How much alcohol do you really need at your wedding?
Photo: Benjamin Wheeler
With every wedding we plan we hear the words, “but our guests really do drink a lot”. We’ve seen it all and we know you’re not exaggerating! So, how on earth do you calculate what your guests will drink and make sure your bar doesn’t run dry? We’re here to share our magic formula.
It’s likely you’re reading this if you’ve taken on some of the responsibility of handling the drinks for part of your wedding day. Perhaps you’ll be providing the wine for your meal, the drinks for the bar, or other parts of the day. If not and your caterer is handling all the drinks and an open bar for you, you’ll want to make sure you’ve got enough included in the package and there’s no nasty overflow surprises afterwards (eek!).
GENERAL QUANTITIES WE GO BY TO PLAY IT SAFE:
1 bottle of Prosecco = 5-6 glasses of Spritz, Prosecco, Bellini, etc.
1 beer = 1 drink
1 bottle of wine = 3 glasses
Photo: James Frost
SO LET’S BREAK DOWN THE DAY INTO SECTIONS:
WELCOME DRINK
Welcome drinks are an optional extra and are often handled by the caterer. If you’re paying for service and providing the drinks for this part of the day, just 1 drink per person is enough here as long as the welcome drink is approx. 20 mins long.
APERITIF
Lasting roughly 1.5 - 2 hours and again usually covered by your caterer. Caterers have different allocations. Often it’s half a bottle of Prosecco pp. In reality in this period (as it’s usually the first proper drink of the day) we see people having approx. 5 drinks pp and often couples add other drinks such as wine, cocktails, beer and soft drinks. If the caterer allows, it’s often much more economical to provide your own beer and ask them to chill it.
DINNER
Caterers usually offer between half and 1 bottle of wine pp at dinner. It’s rare to find unlimited drinks here and any drinks other than wine and water. Guests will drink at least 1 bottle of wine pp. So get clear on the cost of the caterer’s wine after your allocation has been used up so you can forecast the overflow, or source your own wine (factoring in any corkage). Usually continuing with the caterer’s wine is the least expensive and hassle-free way to do things. Note that prosecco for speeches is usually an extra cost.
Note that prosecco for speeches is usually an extra cost.
PARTY
If you’re sourcing the drinks for your bar, you’ll probably be most nervous about getting this bit right. From the hundreds of parties we’ve seen, we’ve learned to forecast 4 drinks pp (average) per hour with this decreasing as the night and the party goes on.
If you are buying your own drinks remember that if you have leftovers, these can be used if you’re having an event the day after. You could even make it someone’s job to check the drinks left the next day and go to the supermarket to top up accordingly.
Photo: Italian Taste Lodovichi
WHERE TO SOURCE ALCOHOL
Supermarket: lowest cost but often don’t have huge quantities.
Wholesalers: often need an Italian business to make orders on your behalf - this can be done through your wedding planner or venue.
Vineyards: boxes or bottles of wine at cost price.
We really hope this helps you make some realistic and evidence-based estimates on how much alcohol you’ll need at your wedding. So even if your uni crew are coming and bringing the vibe, or your mad Uncle is in attendance and drinking everyone else under the table…you can relax and enjoy the day knowing everyone is catered for and there will be no last-minute alcohol-based emergencies.
Are you currently looking for a caterer that ticks all the boxes?
Check out our fabulous catering members here- all highly recommended for their professionalism, ethos and delicious authentic cuisine (chefs kisses all-round).
Written by Lucy White, Founder of La Lista & Wiskow & White, with over 5 years and 150 weddings worth of experience.
