How much alcohol should we buy, supplying a 21st birthday party?

Question

Hey there everyone - helping a friend organise her approaching 21st, and a little confused how much alcohol we should buy (nothing worse than running out, but we don't want to go overboard on the $'s!). So, we are thinking of making a big container/bin of punch, having some light and heavy beers, red and white wine, and some bubbly. We are Aussie's, so talking in terms of slabs (24 beers). Not sure of the final invite list, but could you help me out in how much you would buy for say, 100 people? They will be mixed in age and lifestyle, some older family and family friends, and plenty of school, uni, and college friends (who can all drink alot!). Please help? Any assistance would be greatly appreciated!!!! thanks again!

Answer 1

make it easy on yourself and stick to 2 (maybe 3) categories... either wine and beer, or beer and hard liquor, or punch and beer. having too many combinations not only complicates the organizers of the party, but you're more likely to have a greater instances of people mixing too many varieties which = yak.

if you're going to be entertaining older guests, i'd stay away from the jungle juice/punch and keep it strictly cocktails and beer (and maybe wine). if its an all out back yard frat style party, then bring the jungle juice and a few kegs, don't forget the ice and the tap, and do a few keg stands for me.

also, consider your budget as booze ain't cheep. if its going to be a nite of mindless boozing and your guest aren't picky, stick to the generic brands and get as much as you can afford. alcohol doesn't go bad, and you'll probably drink it b4 it gets even close to expiring.

if your guest don't want to drink wine in boxes and down 40's of malt liquor, get Heinekens and Coronas (w/ some light beer for the ladies), and hit Costco for the XL sized bottles of decent hard liquors. make sure you also stock some good mixers (coke, sprite, cranberry juice, rockstar, tonic, lime wedges) and plenty of ice. one way to keep it simple and make it fun is to offer two or three premixed cocktails, like 3 variations of vodka drinks (apple martini, rockstar n' vodka, cranberry n' vodka) and serve them all nite.

as for quantity, i say calculate about 4-6 drinks per person and do the math. a keg of decent beer will run you less than $100, and you'll get more out of that than 4 cases (or slabs) of beer for the same $$. make sure you get it early and let it sit for a few hours on ice or else you'll be pouring foam all nite.

hope this helps!

Answer 2

Check out some of the party planning tools on www.evite.com. They have a drink calculator that takes into consideration the number of guests, the level of drinkers (heavy, medium, light), and the duration of the party. That will give you a good idea of what you will need overall.
Depending on if this is a rather informal event (houseparty/backyard type), I would recommend making it a "Build the Bar" party. You make sure that you have plenty of the mixers and fixings (juices, sodas, garnishes, etc...), but for each invite that is sent, ask the guests to bring a bottle of liquor. Just to cover yourself you may want to have a handle or two of some of the standards (vodka, rum, gin, whiskey -- you can do a lot with those four and an assortment of mixers).
I went to a "Build the Bar" for the holidays and it was a blast. The hosts had a couple of kegs (no wine or bubbly in this case) and they suppied every type of mixer and garnish you could want. Everone brought a bottle and we truly had a full bar. Some people just added to the standards and others brought bottles that added variety (flavored schnapps, liquors, etc).
One warning, by the end of the night there are some scary concoctions that are created. We had a friend who was drinking her new drink "Snow Blown Bananas". It was a mixture of 99 Bananas liquor and Snowstorm, which is a wintergreen flavor liquor that has white flecks floating in it like Goldschlager. It makes the drink look like a snowglobe.
All in All a FUN Night!
Happy 21st!

Answer 3

For me your looking at around 100 or 110 of them actually showing up and then 10 might not even drink or leave soon or whatever so about 100 people and $3 per person is usually reasonable $2 if your cheap $1 if your really cheap. for me this is what i would buy. 2 Bottles of Everclear ($30) 2 Bottles of Cheap Whiskey ($30) 2 Bottles of Cheap Vodka ($30-$20 for really cheap) Keg beer is really good but it's a pain in the *** 5 Thirty Packs of Coors or Budweiser or Keystone ($60) 3 Twelve packs of Smirnoff Ice (for the ladies) ($40) 3 Bottles of Wine (Red and White preferably) (just me but I always like to have wine at a party) $40 Ice, Sprite, Coke, Punch, orange soda and Ginger Ale (Ginger Ale, Sprite and Punch make the Jungle Juice which you pour the Vodka and Everclear into) Roughly $30 That's what I would buy roughly $300 with tax and everyone has a good time and you have alcohol for all types. Don't forget plastic cups too.

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Answer 4

Hi there
I have worked in food service-- specifically bar service for quite a while. Everytime I am planning a bar load for a group of mixed ages, it is best to assume 4 drinks per person. This is because some people drink only a little and some drink a lot.
Make sure you have lots of non alcoholic drinks-- like pop, water and juice. This is good for people who do not drink or people who are being the designated driver and for people who want to mixers.
If I were you i would get:
about 16 cases (slabs) of beer
2-3 bottles of a few kinds of hard liquor
6 bottles of red and white each
5 bottles of bubbly and a bunch of pop, juice and water.
You might have some left over-- but by the sounds of it-- you wont have any left.
Good luck and have fun
one word of advice-- be ready for over night guest or have a designated driver or cab money ready-- you dont want anyone to get hurt or worse --die because you would proably be held responsible in that case
Have a great party

Answer 5

Well may I suggest...

buy a few (2) slabs of beer or a keg...a few bottles of wine coolers and maybe a couple (2) bottles of Bourbon, a bottle of rum, a bottle of vodka, a couple slabs of soda for mixers...

I would also suggest that you tell everyone that it is a BYOB, (bring your own bottle)...this will ensure that people pitch in, and your liability is reduced, if someone gets in trouble because they brought their own booze, you wont assume responsibility...

BYOB..also this will reduce cost factors...

Party Idea ( have a trash can party)...have everyone BYOB, get a new trash can fill it with ice and fruit (apples, grapes, watermelon, etc)...you supply the fruit and ice and cups, and canned fruit juice like fruit punch or orange etc...tell everyone to bring a clear bottle of booze, rum,vodka, etc... (no whiskey ruins flavor)...then add a 1/2 fifth of everclear or something 100 proof if you would like...purchase 4-5 slabs of beer for those people that don't want punch...

this trash can party will be the talk of the birthdays to come...everyone will get f**k up and have fun...

Answer 6

How Much Alcohol To Buy

Answer 7

at my 21st birthday we supplied light beer and wine, if you wanted stronger suff it was byo
most 21st tend to be byo spirts anyway!
i suggest for 100 people 5 slabs of a light beer, and cask wines, one red 2 white
some bottles shops have a return if you dont drink it thingy going, it might be worth looking into
bubbl is good for toasts, i recomend matthew lang sparkling, its really really cheap, but surprisingly delicious
or for somthing a bit more xpensive, bella by yellowglen, its a pink bubbly and really yummy
passion pop never fails with women too!!!!!!
i cud only ever drink it strait out the bottle though hahahahha
have fun

Answer 8

First, for the big 2-1, forget the sissy stuff. Stick to the beer. 2-3 kegs should do it. Next, you should get a 10 gallon water cooler and fill it up with one and a half fifths of everclear with rum, sprite and gatorade. That stuff will knock your socks off!! and if you mix it correctly, it taste good. I would have enough to make 20 gallons. if you finish all of that, then you have done something!!

Answer 9

I'd say 25 bottles of wine, 15-20 bottles of bubbly, 20 "slabs", and plenty of hard alcohol (vodka, whiskey, rum are three essentials). I'd say this is a minimum for 100 people.

Answer 10

This is simple. All you need is 1-2 keg, depending on guest list. (And then some cut up fresh fruit, *such as melons*, grapes apples, strawberry's ,etc...,Then some Fruit punch, and/or 7up, Bacardi silver, vodka, and some everclear, or pure grain alcohol) Enjoy.