How much alcohol do I need for a wedding?
Plan on about one drink per guest per hour for the guests who drink. For 120 guests over a five-hour reception, that’s roughly 510 drinks: about 51 bottles of wine, 5 cases of beer and 10 bottles of liquor on a full bar. Enter your numbers below.
guests, a -hour reception, and % of guests drinking.
Bar
Drinks mix
Your bar list
Questions planners ask
How many drinks per guest per hour should I plan for?
A common rule of thumb, used by both Zola and The Knot, is one drink per guest per hour, so about five drinks each over a five-hour reception. Guests drink more early on and slow down later, and shorter events run a little higher per hour. This calculator applies the rule only to guests who drink.
How much wine do I need for 100 guests?
With 85% of 100 guests drinking for five hours, plan on about 425 drinks. On a full bar where wine is half of what’s poured, that’s 43 bottles (a 750 ml bottle pours five 5 oz glasses), or a little under four cases. On a beer-and-wine bar it climbs to about 64 bottles.
How much should we buy for a beer and wine only bar?
Zola suggests planning roughly 75% wine and 25% beer when there’s no liquor. For 120 guests over five hours with 85% drinking, that works out to about 77 bottles of wine and 6 cases of beer. Switch the bar style above and the mix updates for you.
How much champagne do we need for a toast?
Zola counts about eight toast pours per 750 ml bottle, so 100 drinking guests need around 13 bottles. The Knot notes many guests toast with the drink already in hand and leave glasses unfinished, so pouring only for those who want one is a fair way to save.