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The short answer
A standard 750 ml bottle pours five 5-oz glasses of wine or honey wine. For a dinner, plan one glass per guest in the first hour and a little under one per hour after that. For a toast, one bottle of sparkling covers six people.
Party calculator
Enter only the guests who will drink. The result rounds up and adds 10% for spills, top-ups and the guest who pours their own.
Glasses per bottle, by pour
| Pour | Size | Per 750 ml | Per 500 ml | Per 375 ml |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tasting flight | 2 oz (59 ml) | 12.7 | 8.5 | 6.3 |
| Dessert or sack mead | 3 oz (89 ml) | 8.5 | 5.6 | 4.2 |
| Sparkling toast | 4 oz (118 ml) | 6.3 | 4.2 | 3.2 |
| Standard glass | 5 oz (148 ml) | 5.1 | 3.4 | 2.5 |
| Generous glass | 6 oz (177 ml) | 4.2 | 2.8 | 2.1 |
Magnums and other large bottles
| Bottle | Size | 5-oz glasses | 4-oz toasts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Half bottle | 375 ml (12.7 fl oz) | 2.5 | 3.2 |
| Standard bottle | 750 ml (25.4 fl oz) | 5.1 | 6.3 |
| Magnum | 1.5 L (50.7 fl oz) | 10.1 | 12.7 |
| Double magnum | 3 L (101.4 fl oz) | 20.3 | 25.4 |
A 1.5 L magnum pours ten standard glasses, the same as two ordinary bottles. For a long table, a single 3-liter double magnum of honey wine pours twenty.
Bottles by number of guests
| Guests | Toast only | 2-hour reception | 3-hour dinner | 4-hour party |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 |
| 20 | 4 | 8 | 11 | 15 |
| 30 | 6 | 12 | 17 | 22 |
| 50 | 9 | 19 | 28 | 36 |
| 75 | 14 | 29 | 41 | 53 |
| 100 | 18 | 38 | 55 | 71 |
| 150 | 27 | 57 | 82 | 106 |
If honey wine is one choice among several, halve these numbers. If it is a novelty most guests will only try once, plan one 3-oz pour per guest.
Standard drinks in a glass of mead
In the US a standard drink is 0.6 fl oz (14 g) of pure alcohol, the amount in a 5-oz glass of 12% wine, according to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Mead ranges from session strength to fortified-wine strength, so the same glass can hold very different amounts. Details on typical strengths are in our honey wine alcohol and calories guide.
| Style | ABV | Oz for one standard drink | A 5-oz glass is |
|---|---|---|---|
| Session mead (hydromel) | 6% | 10.0 oz | 0.5 drinks |
| Sparkling honey wine | 11% | 5.5 oz | 0.9 drinks |
| Typical honey wine | 12.5% | 4.8 oz | 1.0 drinks |
| Traditional mead | 14% | 4.3 oz | 1.2 drinks |
| Sack mead | 18% | 3.3 oz | 1.5 drinks |
Hosting tips
- Chill ahead: still honey wine at 45 to 55°F, sparkling at 40 to 45°F. An ice bucket with ice and water chills a bottle in about 20 to 30 minutes; the refrigerator takes a few hours. More in how to serve and store honey wine.
- Stretch it: a pitcher of golden sangria or a round of spritzes makes one bottle serve twice as many guests. Recipes are in honey wine cocktails.
- Pair it: honey wine suits cheese boards, spicy food and dessert. See honey wine food pairing, or for a holiday roast, what wine goes with honey glazed ham.
- Leftovers: recork and refrigerate. Still honey wine keeps about a week once opened.
- Making your own for the event? One gallon of homemade mead gives four to five bottles. Start 4 to 6 months ahead with one of our mead recipes.
Buying for a crowd
For a toast, a dry sparkling honey wine; for a dinner table, a semi-sweet still one that pleases most palates. Our best honey wine guide has picks by style, and where to buy honey wine covers ordering by the case.
Frequently asked questions
How many glasses of wine are in a bottle?
A standard 750 ml bottle holds 25.4 fl oz, which is five 5-oz glasses. With a smaller 4-oz pour you get six, and with 2-oz tasting pours you get about twelve.
How many glasses of wine are in a 1.5 L bottle?
Ten. A 1.5 liter bottle, called a magnum, holds 50.7 fl oz, which is ten 5-oz glasses or about twelve 4-oz pours. A 3 liter double magnum holds twenty 5-oz glasses.
How many glasses of mead are in a bottle?
The same as wine: five 5-oz glasses per 750 ml bottle. Because many meads are sweet or strong, 3-oz pours are common, which gives about eight glasses.
How many bottles of wine do I need for 100 guests?
For a three-hour dinner where wine is the main drink, about 55 bottles: one glass per guest in the first hour, then roughly one more every 80 minutes, plus a 10% buffer. If wine is one of several drinks, about 25 to 30 bottles.
How many bottles of honey wine for a wedding toast?
One 750 ml bottle of sparkling gives six 4-oz toasts, so divide your guest count by six and add 10%. For 120 guests that is 22 bottles.
Is a glass of mead one standard drink?
Not always. A US standard drink is 0.6 fl oz of pure alcohol, which is a 5-oz glass at 12%. A 5-oz glass of 14% mead is about 1.2 standard drinks, and a sack mead at 18% is 1.5.
How many cases of wine for a party?
A case holds 12 bottles, or 60 five-ounce glasses. As a rule of thumb, one case covers about 20 to 25 guests for a three-hour dinner.