How much wine do I need for wedding?

Calculating how much wine you need for a wedding

Choosing the volume of wine you need for a wedding can be difficult. After all, you have so many people that you need to try to keep topped up – and you also need to make sure that you choose a good, yet affordable wine. If you need some help choosing the bottles of wine for your wedding and how many bottles you need then you have come to the right place. You can easily find out everything you need to know, right here.

How Much Wine Do I Need For A Wedding?

It’s generally quite difficult to predict as some guests will drink more than others, some may not even enjoy wine, opting for other options such as beer or spirits. In general, it’s always better to have a little more than you need rather than run out before the end of the night.

In general, you’ll get 3 large glasses of wine to the bottle. With this in mind, you’ll need a minimum of:

25 bottles of white/red and 17 bottles of champagne / sparkling wine for 50 adults
50 bottles of white/red and 33 bottles of champagne / sparkling wine for 100 adults
75 bottles of white/red and 50 bottles of champagne / sparkling wine for 150 adults

This is mainly because venues would expect half a bottle of wine with the meal for each person, give or take. You’ll need a separate calculation for Champagne or sparkling wine.

Arrival and Toasts

Usually, people like to have some champagne or sparkling wine that can be used for the toasts, and you will also need to make sure that you have some for the welcome drinks as well. During the toasts, your guests are likely to be seated and therefore restricted in terms of what you provide them. One glass per person is usually ideal here. You do however need to allow 2 glasses per person for those who are going to be in attendance for a longer period of time.

If there is a bar available then this should be more than enough, but if you’re buying in cases then it helps to round up to the next whole case so that you have plenty to go around. People often like to serve a well-known champagne for the toasts, before using a cost-effective champagne / sparkling wine for the welcome drinks. This will help you to keep the cost down while also helping your guests to really enjoy the moment.

Wine with The Meal

Half a bottle of wine per person, with a bit extra for good measure, is generally a really good amount. You also need to make sure that you have a 50/50 split of white wine and red wine. Of course, it’s completely up to you whether you’d prefer to provide wine on the tables for your guests or whether you would much rather have waiting staff available to top up your glasses for you.

What Wine to Serve with the Meal?

A lot of people believe that you should serve the wine that matches your meal on the wedding day. At the end of the day though, you have to remember that if you like a certain wine then it should go with whatever food that is on offer. The season of your wedding might affect the split of red wine and white wine you have as well. If you are hosting a wedding in winter then it may be that you need to have more red wine. If you are in summer, however, people might prefer white wine instead.

General Advice

When you buy a bottle of champagne, you can usually count on a standard flute to hold around 125ml. This means that for every normal bottle of champagne you get, you can serve 6 glasses. A standard bottle of wine will give you 6 x 125ml glasses or 3 large glasses. A case of wine is normally 12 bottles, but if you were to buy a case of champagne then you will soon find that they more commonly come in boxes of 6. The main reason or this is because of the sheer weight of the bottles. If you were to order magnums, then this will come in crates of 3, as they are double the size.

Wine and Food Matching Inspirations

Seafood or vegetarian meals tend to lend themselves quite well to a Gavi, Pinot Grigio or even a Sauvignon Blanc. Smoked fish, chicken or anything that is being served with a somewhat creamy sauce needs to have more body and texture, with a good amount of acidity to cut through. In this instance, a Chenin Blanc or even a Chardonnay would work perfectly. Pork, on the other hand, is quite fatty, so a wine that strong acidity would be ideal at cutting through this. Pork and apple go well together, so a wine with this apple flavours would be the ideal choice. If you’re stuck, then opt for a Riesling.

With lamb, you don’t want something too overpowering or tannic. A wine from the Rhone valley with some nice spice would work well, and so would a shiraz. Beef needs a big “beefy” wine. When it comes to big wine, Bordeaux is easily the best, but if you want to mix things up then a Cabernet Sauvignon could also be a decent option.

Going for something Italian or a rich sauce? Tomato doesn’t do a lot for wine, but there’s a saying- “what grows together, goes together”. An Italian wine, whether it’s red or white, will complement the food nicely.

Summary

So there you have it – you now know how much wine you need for a wedding. Of course, the number also depends on whether you and your bride/groom are huge wine connoisseurs. If this is you, please read about our wine wedding gift lists set up to help your guest choose a wedding gift you’ll actually enjoy! The wine won’t be used on the day. Instead, your guests can choose and purchase a bottle from your wine gift list and personalise the gift with a message so you and your wife / husband-to-be can relive the day and toast to your friends long after the wedding has finished.