Wedding · 200 to 300 guests
Wine for a large wedding: pallet, two bars, cold room, tight margin
At 250 guests, the wine is no longer a shopping trip: it is a delivery. Forty to fifty cases, one pallet, two service points, staff, and a safety margin held at 10% because one case too many at this scale becomes five. The calculator is set for 250; the page says what changes beyond 150.
The calculation for 250 guests
Two-hour drinks reception (vin d'honneur), seated dinner, three-hour party, 80% drinkers. Change the number: from 200 to 300 the shape stays the same, only the pallet gets bigger.
What 250 changes compared with 100
Orders of magnitude for a full day; the calculator gives the exact figure.
| Item | 100 guests | 250 guests | What changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bottles before margin | ≈ 107 | ≈ 267 | Linear. Nothing surprising. |
| With margin and rounding | 126 | 300 | 50 cases of 6. Rounding weighs less in proportion: that is the only advantage of numbers. |
| Delivery | Parcel, 21 cases | Pallet | Beyond 120 bottles it goes on a pallet: a lorry, access, someone to receive it, a place to store it. |
| Service points | 1 bar | 2 bars, 3 for the party | One bar for 80 to 100 people standing. Beyond that, the queue puts people off and the bottles stay closed. |
| Staff | 3 to 4 | 8 to 9 | One waiter per 30 seated. Wine on the tables doesn't serve itself. |
| Chilling | Tubs | Cold room the day before | Two hundred bottles at 8 °C can't be done in tubs on the day. |
| Glasses | ≈ 320 | ≈ 800 | Flute, wine glass, water glass, breakage included. To hire, or check the venue contract. |
Logistics, item by item
The pallet
Delivered in the week of the wedding to the venue, with lorry access and someone to sign. Lead times, charges by band and what changes beyond 120 bottles are on the delivery page.
The caterer
At this scale, the caterer stores, chills and serves. The wine can be delivered directly to them and invoiced to them or to you. See how we work with caterers.
Service
Eight to nine people in the room for 250 seated, one bar per 80 standing, and the glasses to go with them: the count is on the glasses and waiters page.
The margin
10% and no more. At 250 guests, a 20% margin means 27 bottles too many, four and a half cases that are not taken back. The calculator is tight on purpose.
How many bottles for a wedding of 250 people?
About 270 bottles before margin for a full day with 80% drinkers, 300 with the margin and rounding up to the case per colour: around a hundred sparkling, 72 red, 72 white, 54 rosé. With no party, it comes down to around 220. The 150 people page describes the threshold where all this starts.
Should you order everything at once or in two goes?
At once, delivered on one pallet, but split by the caterer between two storage points: what is drunk cold in the cold room, the red somewhere sheltered. Two deliveries double the charges and the access risks. What you can do in two goes is the order: a firm order 45 days before for 90% of the volume, a top-up 15 days before once the guests' replies are in.
What wine budget for 250 guests?
From €4,000 for decent Bordeaux to €6,500 at the good level, or €16 to €26 per guest with champagne at the drinks reception and the party. With classified growths at the meal and champagne throughout, over €11,000. The calculator's table gives the three levels for your quantities. At this scale, volume discounts exist and are negotiated on the quote.
Is the calculation the same as for a wedding of 100?
Yes, per person: the rules for each moment don't change with the number. What changes is everything around the wine. The wine for a wedding page explains the calculation moment by moment; this one explains the pallet, the bars and the chilling.
Fifty cases, one pallet, one delivery: quote request, reply within 48 working hours with the volume discount.