Your best resource for crafting classic and creative drinks for any occasion. We’ve also included a few staples like how to make Simple Syrup, and tips for using fresh lemon and lime juice to elevate your drinks.
Our guide makes party planning easier—no more standing in the middle of the grocery store trying to calculate ingredients for a 2-gallon batch of cocktails. We've added several bulk measurements to simplify your shopping, but we want to hear from you. If you're still unsure about any calculations or find areas where we could improve, we’d love your feedback.
Pro Tip: For upscaling these recipes for 5 gallon kegs, simply multiply the recipe volumes by 2.5
When scaling a recipe, you want your total ingredients to add up to about 7.5 liters (allowing for a bit of headspace).
Since most liquor is sold in 750 ml bottles (0.75 L) or 1 L bottles, converting your recipe into liters makes shopping and measuring simpler. Most recipes for kegged cocktails start with:
Then fill the rest with mixers. The chart below has common measurement conversions.
Quick reference for batching cocktails — optimized for 1–2 gallon kegs
| Measurement | Ounces (oz) | Cups | Liters (L) | Units per Gallon | Units for 2 Gallons | Additional Info |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Gallons | 256 | 32 | 7.57 | — | 1 | Full keg capacity |
| 1 Gallon | 128 | 16 | 3.8 | 1 | 2 | — |
| 2 L Bottle | 67.6 | 8.5 | 2 | 1.9 | 3.8 | Common soda bottle |
| Half Gallon | 64 | 8 | 1.9 | 2 | 4 | 2 quarts |
| Liter | 33.8 | 4.2 | 1 | 3.8 | 7.6 | — |
| Quart | 32 | 4 | 0.95 | 4 | 8 | — |
| Fifth of Alcohol (750 ml) | 25.4 | 3.2 | 0.75 | 5.1 | 10.1 | Common liquor bottle |
| Pint | 16 | 2 | 0.47 | 8 | 16 | — |
| 1 Cup | 8 | 1 | 0.24 | 16 | 32 | 16 tablespoons |
| 1 Tablespoon | 0.5 | — | — | 256 | 512 | 3 teaspoons |
