Food & drink · Cocktails
Batch cocktail calculator.
Enter one serving, set the number of servings and the dilution, and get the quantity of each ingredient, the water to add, the final ABV and how many bottles it fills.
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Your batch
Enter at least one ingredient.
How to scale a cocktail recipe into a batch
Multiply every ingredient by the number of servings, then add dilution water. In a single drink, shaking or stirring over ice melts some ice into the drink. A batch skips that step, so you add the water yourself as a percentage of the ingredient volume: final volume = ingredient volume × (1 + dilution). The tool also gives the pour size per serving so the bottle can be poured straight into a glass.
Worked example. 12 Negronis at 1 oz each of gin (40%), sweet vermouth (16%) and Campari (25%), stirred at 20%: one serving is 3 oz (88.7 mL), so the ingredients total 1065 mL. Add 213 mL of water for 1278 mL, or 1.70 bottles of 750 mL. ABV falls from 27.0% to 22.5%, and each serving is 1.41 Canadian standard drinks (1.35 US).
About the 20% and 25% presets. They are bartending rules of thumb, not published standards. Real dilution depends on ice, time and technique, and a drink poured over fresh ice will dilute further in the glass, so use a lower figure if the batch is served on ice. Mix a small test batch and taste before scaling up.
Standard drinks. Health Canada defines a standard drink as 17.05 mL or 13.45 g of pure alcohol; NIAAA defines a US standard drink as 14 g. Ethanol mass uses 0.789 g/mL, and the small volume shrinkage when alcohol and water mix is ignored.
Frequently asked questions
How do I turn a single cocktail recipe into a batch?
Multiply each ingredient by the number of servings, then add water equal to the dilution you want, usually 20% to 25% of the ingredient volume for a stirred or shaken drink. This tool does both and shows the total volume.
How much water do I add to a batched cocktail?
Common bartending rules of thumb are about 20% for a stirred drink and about 25% for a shaken drink. These are not published standards, so test a small batch and adjust.
How many bottles will my batch fill?
Divide the total batch volume by the bottle size. In the example above, 1278 mL is 1.70 bottles of 750 mL, so you would fill 2.
How many standard drinks are in a batch?
Each Negroni in the example holds 1.41 Canadian standard drinks (13.45 g of alcohol each), so the batch of 12 holds about 16.9.
Sources
Opened
- Health Canada: Low-risk alcohol drinking guidelines: A Canadian standard drink is 17.05 mL or 13.45 g of pure alcohol.
- NIAAA: What is a standard drink?: A US standard drink contains 14 grams of pure alcohol.
- CCSA: Canada's Guidance on Alcohol and Health: Lists 2 standard drinks or less per week as the level where you are likely to avoid alcohol-related consequences, and says risk rises with each additional drink.
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Scope
Drink responsibly. Canada’s Guidance on Alcohol and Health (CCSA) puts 2 standard drinks or less per week as the level where you are likely to avoid alcohol-related consequences, and says risk rises with each additional drink. Never drive after drinking, and follow your local rules on serving alcohol. This tool is arithmetic, not medical or legal advice. Estimates only: real ABV differs a little because of volume contraction, and label ABVs vary by brand.