How to Estimate the Amount of Drinks Needed for a Party

When you host a party, it's not good to run short on the refreshments. It's embarrassing to watch parched guests mill around with empty cups; there should be plenty of snacks and drinks!

Planning the right amount of alcohol, soda, and cocktails to buy for your party is both a science and an art. It's just like estimating the amount of food you'll need to serve to your guests.

Plan Within Your Budget

In an ideal world, every party host would have an extra refrigerator packed with wine, beer, spirits, soft drinks, and all the possible beverages a guest might want. While there are a lucky few who have this, most people don't. If you have a strict party budget and only one fridge, don't panic.

Before you put together a shopping list, ask yourself a few very important questions:

• How many adults will be attending?
• How many children will be there?
• How long will the party run?
• Will the party be indoors or outside?
• What type of party will it be? Dinner party? Barbecue? Cocktail party?
• Will you have a bartender serving drinks, or will you fill that role?

Things to Consider Before Picking Up Drinks

• Your guests' personal tastes: Are they into parties where the only necessity is that beer flows all night? Do they love to show off their latest vintage wine when you attend a dinner party at their home? Maybe you're hosting a foodie crowd who gets easily excited by the newest, trendiest cocktails when you hit the bars together.
• Your menu: Consider your audience, but what your guests are used to shouldn't immediately dictate what you choose to serve. You should select beverages based on your menu and type of party. However, it will give you a hint as to what the volume of drinking should be if you offer a variety.
• Who's behind the bar: If you plan to hire a bartender, a full bar will be manageable. But if you'll be mixing drinks all night for your guests, you'll want to simplify your offerings to make your hosting job easier. Remember: it's your party, you want to have fun too!
• The ages of your guests: If there will be lots of kids, plan on stocking up on juices, soft drinks, and water. Will there be many young men, fresh out of college? Then don't skimp on the beer. Is it an older, more sophisticated group? Be sure to lay out a good supply of wine and spirits.
• Try a signature beverage: This will add style to your party and can be a nice addition to a themed event. At the same time, it will keep your budget more manageable than the cost of stocking a full bar with alcohol, mixers, wine, and beer.
• Your partying schedule: If you entertain often, then it may pay to keep a fully stocked bar. Take inventory before your party to determine what extra beverages you'll need to purchase.

There are also general party tips to keep in mind that may affect the number of beverages consumed at your event. To help keep the drinks flowing, make sure you're equipped with essential supplies and that nothing's going to waste.

• Don't open everything at the beginning of your party: You don't want to be left with 10 bottles of wine that are only partially consumed. Also, if you purchased beverages that you don't normally keep in your home, you may be able to return them after the party if they're unopened.
• Remember to stock up on lots of ice: You should have at least one pound of ice per person. This covers the ice you'll be serving in drinks and need to keep beverages cold. If the weather is hot or the party is active, it's best to have more. On the other hand, if you have many refrigerators to keep your beer and other beverages chilled until serving, you can have less.
• Be sure to have enough glasses: Whether it's glass or disposable, when setting up the drinkware for your party, plan on multiple glasses per guest. This can be cut back if you use wine glass charms or other drink markers. Guests often forget where they place a drink or they may change beverages over the course of your party, requiring a new glass.

Serving Guidelines for a Two-Hour Party

How much should you stock for a party? In general, plan on two beverages per guest during the first hour of your party, and one each hour after that. Quite often, parties last at least two hours, though yours may go a little longer depending on the occasion.

Each of these estimates assumes that it will be the only beverage served during the party unless stated otherwise. Therefore, if you will be serving a variety, cut back on each individual item based on what you think the most and least popular drinks will be among your guests.

• Wine: Estimate one bottle of wine for every two guests at a two-hour cocktail party. If serving both red and white wines, you should have twice as many bottles of white as red, unless you know specifically that your guests are red wine drinkers.
• Beer: Plan on two bottles or servings of beer per person for the first hour, and another one for each subsequent hour of your party.
• Champagne or sparkling wine: One 750 ml bottle of champagne or sparkling wine fills six champagne flutes. If serving it as a toast, one glass per person is enough. If you're serving champagne as a pre-meal cocktail, plan on one and a half glasses per person. If it will be served throughout a two-hour cocktail party or dinner, plan on three glasses per person.
• Spirits and mixers: One 750 ml bottle of liquor will serve 15 drinks. Plan on three drinks per person during a two-hour cocktail party. The amount of mixers you will need depends on the type of cocktails you plan to serve. Look at your drink recipes and multiply the volume of mixer ingredients needed per cocktail by three per person for a two-hour party.
• Liqueurs and after-dinner drinks: Plan on getting 15 drinks from every 750 ml bottle. Usually, you'll only need one drink per guest.
• Water: At a cocktail party, one liter of water will serve four guests. At a sit-down meal, plan on serving three guests from each liter. Offer a mix of mineral and still water.
• Soft drinks and juices: At a party where other beverages, such as wine, beer, and cocktails will be served, plan on one eight-ounce glass per person. If there are children, you'll need to increase that amount by three drinks per child. If non-alcoholic drinks will be the only beverages served, plan on three per guest.