How much to buy for the bar.
Guests × hours × your drink mix, turned into whole bottles, cases, kegs, bags of ice and mixers. Print it, or send it to your dry-hire bar so you buy once.
How the list is worked out
Drinks = drinking guests × (first-hour drinks + one per hour after). That total is split by your mix, then divided by servings per unit: 12 oz per beer, 5 oz per US glass of wine (the NIAAA standard drink), 1.5 oz per spirit pour. UK lists use 175 ml wine glasses and 25 ml spirit measures, two of the specified quantities on gov.uk; Australian lists use 150 ml wine and 30 ml nips.
Each line is rounded up to something you can buy, so there is always a little headroom. Consumption rates are a planning convention, not a measurement — and nobody should be served past the point of being drunk, or under the legal drinking age.
Ready-made lists by guest count
Run a mobile bar?
Price your packages from staff hours, travel, consumables and equipment wear, model your startup costs, and print a package menu. The licensing checklists cover UK Temporary Event Notices and US state permits.
Frequently asked questions
How many drinks per guest should I plan for?
A common rule of thumb is two drinks per drinking guest in the first hour and one per hour after that. For a five-hour reception that is six drinks per drinking guest. Adjust down for a lunchtime or family crowd and up for a late party.
How many glasses are in a bottle of wine?
A 750 ml bottle pours five 5 oz US glasses, four 175 ml UK glasses (or six 125 ml) and five 150 ml Australian glasses. The calculator rounds each wine colour up to whole bottles.
How many drinks are in a bottle of spirits?
A 750 ml bottle holds just under seventeen 1.5 oz pours; the calculator counts 16 to allow for spillage. A 70 cl bottle gives 26 UK 25 ml singles after the same allowance, and a 700 ml bottle 22 Australian 30 ml nips.
How much ice do I need for a wedding bar?
Plan about 1.5 lb (0.7 kg) per guest for drinks, and the same again if you chill bottles and cans in tubs. On a hot day or outdoors, add half again. Order it delivered on the day if you can.
Is this a dry-hire shopping list?
Yes. With a dry-hire mobile bar the host buys the alcohol and the bar company serves it. Send this list to your bar company to check against their own numbers; many will adjust it for your crowd.
Help shape what comes next
Everything here is free while Vesperline is in beta. Tell us which of the next tools you would pay for and we will email you when it is ready.