Providing alcoholic beverages for your entire wedding guest list can be a big drain on the wedding budget, so many brides and grooms opt to save a little money by stocking the bar themselves (if their venue or caterer allows, of course). This cost-effective solution raises a vital question: How much beer, wine, and liquor should we serve? We've broken down the calculations.
When it comes to reception bars, brides and grooms have a few different set-up choices: open bar, beer and wine bar, and cash-only bar. An open bar, which is the most common and priciest option, allows guests to drink anything they want without limit. To save money, some brides and grooms opt instead for a beer and wine bar—sometimes adding signature co*cktails or select liquors to the mix. Finally, a couple can have a cash-only bar, which is typically fully stocked but requires guests to pay for their own beverages. We don't recommend the latter, as many guests will see this as rude. It's better to provide a limited bar than to ask your attendees to pay per drink.
Before buying alcohol, estimate how many people will drink at your reception and whether they're light, moderate, or heavy drinkers. Then consider your guests' beverage preferences. If you've invited many wine enthusiasts, for example, offer plenty of reds and whites. On the other hand, if your relatives prefer rum, make sure to have sufficient amounts of liquor (as well as appropriate mixers) on hand.
Consider the Timing
The reception time also affects how much alcohol to serve. If you're tying the knot in the morning or early afternoon, guests will be less inclined to drink than at a nighttime celebration. Similarly, expect guests to indulge more on the weekends than during the week.
Breaking Down the Calculations
As a general rule of thumb, plan to serve one drink per guest per hour of the reception. In other words, if you're having a four-hour reception with 100 guests, provide 400 servings of alcohol. Full bars typically offer beer, wine, and liquor. The exact ratio to supply of each type will depend upon your guests' preferences and your budget, but you can follow a standard guideline when determining the amount to serve: 50% wine, 20% beer, and 30% liquor. If you're having 100 guests and a four-hour reception, for example, you'd purchase 200 servings of wine, 80 servings of beer, and 60 servings of liquor. In addition, you'll want to provide plenty of options; this means at least one type of red and one type of white wine, a few varieties of beer, and a handful of liquors and mixers.
If you're only serving beer and wine, the exact amount to serve again depends on your guests' preferences, the reception time, and the season. A safe estimate would be 75% wine and 25% beer. Say, for example, you're having 100 guests at a four-hour reception, then you'd buy enough for 300 servings of wine and 100 servings of beer.
A long drink or tall drink is an alcoholic mixed drink with a relatively large volume (>120 ml (4.1 US fl oz), frequently 160–400 ml (5.4–13.5 US fl oz)). A classic long drink, the Tom Collins. A long drink will have a tall glass full of mixer, in contrast to a short drink, or shooter, which has less mixer, or none.
(mixed, not straight). The average of long drinks per person in a 5-hour event, is of 5 drinks, that is, about one drink per hour. If your wedding takes place at a very warm place, such as the beach, the average of drinks intake may be higher, around 1.5 drinks per hour.
If you feel confident that no one will get out of hand, feel free to offer as much alcohol as you please. However, know that you can limit your alcohol by providing drink cards, such as a two or three drink limit per guest. This will also assist you in cutting down your costs. Hire a bartender.
If you decide to provide the alcohol, you will most likely need to hire an outside bartending service (or use one provided by the venue) to dole out the drinks. Most of the time, if you hire an independent bartender for your wedding, you will still be supplying all of the alcohol, mixers, garnishes, ice, glasses, etc.
Wine is easily the most classic and popular of all wedding drinks to serve at a wedding or formal gathering; whether it's white, sparkling, or red, wine entertains all sorts of people. Preferably, it's advisable to purchase a bottle for every two people.
A good rule of thumb is to buy 10 bottles of vodka, 6 bottles of whiskey, 6 bottles of gin, 4 bottles of scotch, 2 bottles tequila, 2 bottles of triple sec, 2 bottles of vermouth, 4 cases of beer, and 2 cases of wine for every 100 guests.
The average of long drinks per person in a 5-hour event, is of 5 drinks, that is, about one drink per hour. If your wedding takes place at a very warm place, such as the beach, the average of drinks intake may be higher, around 1.5 drinks per hour.
Over the course of your reception (including co*cktail hour), your guests will most likely have about 4 beverages (about 1 per hour). If we do the math here, that is 100 guests x 4 drinks = 400 drinks.
You bar should close between 15 and 30 minutes before the end of your reception. Everyone will have plenty of time to finish their last drink and hit the dancefloor for one final song. If you're planning to have a reception continue well into the night, your bar should continue serving.
The groom's family traditionally paid for all costs associated with the rehearsal dinner and honeymoon, wedding day transportation, and the officiant. The groom paid for the bride's engagement ring, wedding ring, and groomsmen gifts. It is also common for the groom's family to pay for the alcohol at the reception.
For example, for 50 guests who lean towards long drinks, an estimated calculation for the bar would be: tequila, 3 to 4 bottles; vodka, 3 to 4; rum, 2 to 3; fernet, 4 to 5; beer and one glass per person.
Over the course of your reception (including co*cktail hour), your guests will most likely have about 4 beverages (about 1 per hour). If we do the math here, that is 100 guests x 4 drinks = 400 drinks.
The typical school of thought is to plan one drink per hour per guest. Say you want to calculate how much alcohol for a wedding of 150 for a two-hour reception. That would equal 300 drinks throughout your event. Of course, this number is just an average.
When planning an event, the average consumption per person is one drink every 45 minutes. If the event will last 2 hours, plan on 3 drinks per person. Start with your best guess of the drinking habits of your guests. Divide the number of guests between the types of beverages you plan to serve.
Most guests will have two drinks in the first hour and one per hour after that. So for a two-hour event multiply the number of guests by three, and so on, to determine the number of drinks you'll need to serve.
Introduction: My name is Kareem Mueller DO, I am a vivacious, super, thoughtful, excited, handsome, beautiful, combative person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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