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The working rule for a full bar is one drink per guest per hour, plus an extra round in the first hour. For 100 guests over 5 hours that is 450 drinks, which works out to roughly 45 bottles of wine, 7 cases of beer and 5 bottles of liquor, plus 250 cups and 150 pounds of ice. Put your own guest count and hours into the calculator below, or read the worked examples for 50, 100 and 150 guests. These are South Florida quantities, where the heat pushes consumption up.
Palm Beach Cocktails
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450 drinks poured
One drink per guest per hour, plus an extra round in the first — that is when people arrive thirsty and the bar is busiest. Of what gets poured, about half is wine, a third beer, the rest liquor.
These are South Florida quantities, where the heat pushes consumption up. Buy toward the higher end for a summer afternoon, the lower end for a seated dinner. You know your guests better than a calculator does.
Serving Palm Beach, Broward, and Martin counties. Quantities are an estimate to plan against, not a guarantee. Supplies are billed at cost and card payments carry a 4% processing fee.
Worked Examples
Every figure below is the calculator's own arithmetic, written out. Three quarters of your guests drink, each has a drink an hour with an extra round in the first, and the pour splits half wine, a third beer, the rest liquor. A 750 mL bottle of wine pours five glasses, a 750 mL bottle of liquor pours seventeen drinks, and a case of beer holds twenty-four.
Full bar
Seventy-five of your hundred guests will drink. Over a five hour service that is 450 drinks once you add the extra round in the first hour, when people arrive thirsty and the bar is busiest.
Split half wine, a third beer and the rest liquor, that comes to 45 bottles of wine, 7 cases of beer and 5 bottles of liquor, plus 250 cups and 150 pounds of ice.
Full bar
Thirty-eight of your fifty guests will drink, and four hours of service comes to 190 drinks.
That is 19 bottles of wine, 3 cases of beer and 2 bottles of liquor - 72 beers in all - plus 130 cups and 80 pounds of ice. One bartender covers a room this size.
Full bar
A hundred and thirteen of your hundred and fifty guests will drink, and six hours of service comes to 791 drinks.
That is 80 bottles of wine, 11 cases of beer and 8 bottles of liquor, plus 380 cups and 230 pounds of ice. At this size you are into three bartenders and an hour past the five hour window.
If you book us, that list gets shorter. The quantities above are the complete standalone list for a BYOB bar. Palm Beach Cocktails is a BYOB service, so you buy the alcohol at retail and we never mark it up, but we bring the ice and all bar tools ourselves, and on cocktail packages we bring the mixers and fresh garnishes and bill them at our cost. You supply the serviceware. See what a bartender costs for how the packages and supplies are priced.
Common Questions
For 100 guests over a five hour full bar, plan on about 45 bottles of wine, 7 cases of beer, and 5 bottles of liquor. That covers roughly 450 drinks, which is what 75 drinking guests get through in five hours plus an extra first round. You will also want about 250 cups and 150 pounds of ice.
Plan on just under half a bottle of wine per guest at a full bar wedding. A 750 mL bottle pours five glasses, so 100 guests over five hours works out to 45 bottles, which is 0.45 bottles each. If you are serving beer and wine only, that rises to 54 bottles, because wine carries a larger share of the pour.
For 50 guests over four hours at a full bar, plan on 3 cases of beer, which is 72 bottles or cans. If beer and wine are the only things you are serving, buy 4 cases instead. Cases of 24 are the easiest unit to buy and the easiest to get cold in time.
A 750 mL bottle of liquor pours about 17 drinks at a standard 1.5 ounce measure. A 750 mL bottle of wine pours five glasses, and a case of beer holds 24. Those three numbers are what this calculator divides your drink count by.
You buy the alcohol. Palm Beach Cocktails is a BYOB service, so you choose exactly what is poured, buy it at retail, and we never mark it up. We bring the staff, ice, and all bar tools, and for cocktail packages we bring mixers and fresh garnishes billed at our cost. You supply the serviceware.
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We are an insured, certified BYOB bartending service across Palm Beach, Broward and Martin counties. Read how much a mobile bartender costs, browse the frequently asked questions, or see the longer BYOB shopping guide. We cover West Palm Beach, Boca Raton, Delray Beach and Wellington.
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