Planning the drinks for an event is important but not usually at the top of your To Do list. It’s not always the main part of an event, and of course the reason for the celebration should be forefront in the minds of the organisers or guests, but the drinks are important if you want your guests to feel welcome and relaxed.
Planning the drinks for an event is important but not usually at the top of your To Do list. It’s not always the main part of an event, and of course the reason for the celebration should be forefront in the minds of the organisers or guests, but the drinks are important if you want your guests to feel welcome and relaxed.
We’ve hired glasses for events in Birmingham, Worcester and Warwickshire for 20 years, we’ve got a proven calculator to help you work out your event drinks and glasses requirements.
One of the main fears organisers have is not having enough drink for the event!
So how much do you need? Here’s a helpful guide so you can plan your champagne and wine order, and the glass hire to go with it.
How many bottles of champagne do I need for a reception?
Champagne is seen as the choice for an event reception, where budgets permit.
Looking to save some budget? Prosecco, Cava, or a sparkling wine will also do the job.
But how many bottles will you need?
This will depend on the way you run your event, but the general rule of thumb is to plan for half a bottle-a-head for a typical drinks reception.
Even with a 90-minute welcome, this amount will give you enough to offer a top up to the guests’ glasses. This is a better way of serving as it saves on glass hire and wasted drinks, poured and placed on a reception table, but not taken.
Here’s how it stacks up for a 100 person reception:
- Just one glass on arrival – 15 bottles.
- Or a glass with top-ups for an hour or so – 48 bottles maximum (half a bottle a head).
You’ll most likely use less when you consider that some people will drink soft drinks or decline the top-up. The above is the most you’ll need in almost all cases.
How many bottles of wine do I need?
Moving onto dinner, you’ll need to think about the table wine. Once again, the half a bottle a head rule fits perfectly.
If you aim to source half a bottle of red and half a bottle of white for each person then you’ll have plenty for your dinner refreshments. Some will drink more, some less, and in our 20 years’ experience of events across Birmingham, Worcestershire, and Warwickshire this has rarely failed.
If you’re offering rosé too, then we’d recommend far less than half a bottle a head as this is less popular than its red and white counterparts.
Here’s what a 100 person dinner looks like:
- 50 bottles of red.
- 50 bottles of white.
- 10/12 bottles of rose (if at all).
You’ll have more than enough and if you’re having an evening bar, you’ll be safe on those numbers.
The best way to serve the wine is to place two bottles of red (opened) on the tables as you lay the tables. (So you’ll need 20 bottles for 10 tables of 10), and then place two bottles of chilled white wine on the tables as the starters go down.
Then simply top-up the tables with extra wine as they need it from the ‘pool’ of wine at the bar or kitchen. Once everyone is sat down, you’ll have 30 red and 30 white to go out across the 10 tables over the course of dinner. You’ll be surprised how well this works. At first the wine will go down fast as everyone pours a glass, but they will slow down. Not all, but most will!
How many bottles of Champagne do I need for a champagne toast?
The champagne toast is usually an event at the beginning or end of a wedding breakfast meal. This is not a big drink. It’s a taste, a sensible measure, and often it’s a drink that is left by a number of the guests.
Wastage here can be a shame but is common. A champagne toast therefore should aim to be a delicate measure, but not a mean one.
How many glasses of champagne per bottle?
- There are six full glasses of champagne per 750ml bottle.
- For a toast you should aim for seven glasses.
Most champagne toasts are done after a fair amount of drinking (after the meal) and this will temper a lot of the guests from downing it all. You can save some budget here for the evening entertainment or food.
Here’s how a 100 person event looks for a champagne toast:
- 15 bottles for a sensible measure (leave a finger of space in the top of the glass).
- 17 if you’re going to give a decent glassful.
Want to be on the safe side? Two dozen bottles will more than cover your toast, and as champagne is often bought by the half dozen, 18 is probably a good number to order for 100 people.
How many drinking glasses do I need?
You’ll need glasses to drink from of course, so using our 100 people examples above, let’s lay out the glasses you’ll need for your event.
Glass hire for events are usually ordered by the dozen (12) so we’ll use those numbers below.
Reception drinks
- 108-120 champagne flutes (if you’re offering one glass or a top-up of that glass, double it if you’re offering a second glass).
- 108 ‘slim Jim’ soft drinks glasses.
Dinner/wedding breakfast drinks
- 108-120 red wine glasses.
- 108-120 white wine glasses.
- 108-120 highball glasses (for water).
(The above presumes you’re topping up glasses, rather than offering a fresh glass each time.)
Champagne toast
- 108 champagne flutes.
Of course you’ll need glasses for the bar and other drinks, but we’ve concentrated on the most popular drinks here.
For a more in-depth look at all the glass hire for your event, read our full blog here.
Download your champagne and wine glass calculator - Champagne Toast Calculator and Event Drinks Guide.
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