How Do I Make The Calculations For My Get Together Or Party?

Getting the right quality and quantity can sometimes be a real pain to figure out. So here is a guide to help you plan your event better.  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. For example, you may choose to offer only wine, beer and alcohol-free beverages, calculating 1 drink every 45 minutes, or 3 drinks every 2 hours. Finally, match the total servings to the chart below.

Example:

50 guests for a 2-hour event:
30 will drink wine         x3 drinks = 90 servings
10 will drink  beer        x3 drinks = 30 servings
10 will drink alc.-free   x 3 drinks = 30 servings

In this example you would then need:
Wine = 1 1/2 cases = 90 servings
Beer = 5 six packs = 30 servings
6-750ml bottles of alcohol-free wine = 30 servings
(You may substitute 5 bottles of soda or alcohol-free beer for every 750ml bottle of alcohol-free wine)

When you have no idea what the drinking habits of your guests are, you will need to over-estimate an equal division of all categories. For example, using the same 50 people above, with the same beverage offering, assume 25 people will drink wine, 25 will drink beer, and within the entire group, 25 will probably drink alcohol-free beverages as well. It may seem that you're buying more than you need, but in this way, none of the guests will be disappointed.

Beverage Serving Sizes:

When planning an event, the average consumption per person is 1 drink every 45 minutes. If the event will last 2 hours, plan on 3 drinks per person.

Wine & Champagne:
1 serving = 5oz.
Bottle Size                  # of oz.            # of servings
750 ml (fifth)                  25.4                     5
1.5 Liter (magnum)       50.7                   10
1 case (either size)     304.8                  60

Spirits:
1 serving = 1.5 oz. (jigger)
Bottle Size                  # of oz.            # of servings
750ml (fifth)                    25.4                    16
1 Liter (quart)                 33.8                    22
1.75 Liter (half gallon)   50.7                    39

Beer:
1 serving = 12 oz. or 16 oz. pub glass size
Keg Size                      # of 12 oz.       # of 16 oz.
                                       servings          servings
  5 gallons                       53                        40
  7.75 gallons                  82                        62
13.2 gallons                  140                     105
15.5 gallons                  164                     124