Wine for a Party Calculator

How it works

Glasses = guests × hours × glasses-per-hour · Bottles = ⌈glasses ÷ 5⌉ (5 oz per glass, ~5 glasses per 750 ml bottle)

A standard 750 ml bottle of wine pours about five 5-oz glasses. Estimate total demand as guests times hours times a per-hour drinking pace, then divide by five and round up so you never run short. Planners often assume one glass per guest per hour on average — a little heavier in the first hour, lighter later — and it is wise to buy a bottle or two of margin.

Worked example

Twenty guests over a 4-hour party at one glass per hour is 20 × 4 × 1 = 80 glasses. At five glasses per bottle that is 80 ÷ 5 = 16 bottles, or about 1.3 cases.

Frequently asked questions