# Cocktail ABV Calculator

> Computes the alcohol by volume of a cocktail from the volume and strength of each ingredient plus the water added by shaking or stirring with ice, and converts the pure alcohol to grams, US and Australian standard drinks and UK units per serving.

- Calculator id: `cocktail-abv` · Category: Food & Cooking (`food`) · Tool name: `calculate_cocktail_abv`
- Canonical page: https://tttkmbb.com/food/cocktail-abv · This document: https://tttkmbb.com/food/cocktail-abv.md · JSON definition: https://tttkmbb.com/food/cocktail-abv.json

## Purpose

Computes the alcohol by volume of a cocktail from the volume and strength of each ingredient plus the water added by shaking or stirring with ice, and converts the pure alcohol to grams, US and Australian standard drinks and UK units per serving.

**Use when:** You want to know how strong a cocktail recipe is, how much pure alcohol a serving contains, or how many standard drinks or units it represents.

**Do not use when:** You need the alcohol of a fermented batch from gravity readings (use homebrew-abv). Results are informational and must not be used to decide whether someone is fit to drive or how much is safe to drink.

## Input

| Parameter | Type | Unit | Required | Description |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `ingredient_volumes_ml` | number_list | ml | required | Volume of each ingredient in millilitres (1 US fl oz = 29.57 ml), in order. |
| `ingredient_abvs_percent` | number_list | % | required | Alcohol by volume of each ingredient in percent (0 for juice, syrup, soda), same order. |
| `dilution_percent` | number | % | optional, default 25 | Water added by ice as a percentage of the undiluted volume: about 20–30 % for shaken or stirred drinks, 10–15 % for drinks built over ice and sipped quickly, 0 for neat or pre-batched drinks. (min 0, max 100) |
| `servings` | integer |  | optional, default 1 | Number of servings the listed ingredients make (per-serving outputs divide by this). (min 1, max 100) |

## Output

| Field | Type | Unit | Description |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| `total_volume_ml` | number | ml | Sum of ingredient volumes plus dilution water, for all servings. |
| `serving_volume_ml` | number | ml | total_volume_ml / servings. |
| `alcohol_ml` | number | ml | Σ volume_i × abv_i / 100 for all servings. |
| `final_abv_percent` | number | % | alcohol_ml / total_volume_ml × 100 after dilution. |
| `alcohol_grams` | number | g | alcohol_ml × 0.789 g/ml for all servings. |
| `alcohol_grams_per_serving` | number | g | alcohol_grams / servings. |
| `standard_drinks_us` | number |  | Grams of alcohol per serving / 14 g. |
| `standard_drinks_au` | number |  | Grams of alcohol per serving / 10 g. |
| `units_uk` | number |  | Grams of alcohol per serving / 8 g (= ml of alcohol / 10). |
| `strength_description` | string |  | The cocktail's ABV compared with beer, wine, fortified wine and neat spirits. |
| `warning` | string |  | Informational-use notice. |

## Formula

`alcohol_ml = Σ ingredient_volumes_ml_i × ingredient_abvs_percent_i / 100; total_volume_ml = Σ ingredient_volumes_ml_i × (1 + dilution_percent / 100); final_abv = alcohol_ml / total_volume_ml × 100; alcohol_g = alcohol_ml × 0.789; per serving = ÷ servings; US standard drinks = g / 14, Australian = g / 10, UK units = g / 8`

Ethanol density 0.789 g/ml at 20 °C; the small volume contraction when mixing alcohol and water is ignored. Dilution defaults to 25 %, a typical value for a shaken or stirred cocktail; actual dilution depends on ice, time and technique. Informational only: results must not be used to decide whether anyone is fit to drive.

## Data Sources

- NIAAA – What is a standard drink? (14 g of pure alcohol) — https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohols-effects-health/overview-alcohol-consumption/what-standard-drink (government, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- NHS – Calculating alcohol units (1 unit = 10 ml / 8 g of pure alcohol) — https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/alcohol-advice/calculating-alcohol-units/ (government, retrieved 2026-09-24)
- Wikipedia – Standard drink (grams of ethanol per standard drink by country) — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Standard_drink (reference, retrieved 2026-09-24)

Data freshness: `static`. Deterministic formula with fixed constants; results never go stale. Inputs supplied by the caller determine the output.

## API

- `GET https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculate/cocktail-abv?ingredient_volumes_ml=…&ingredient_abvs_percent=…`
- `POST https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculate/cocktail-abv` with JSON body `{"inputs": {…}}`
- Response: unified envelope (`success`, `request`, `result.values`, `result.units`, `sources`, `freshness`, `timestamp`, `next_actions`, `links`); see https://tttkmbb.com/docs/response-format.md
- Schema: https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculators/cocktail-abv · OpenAPI operationId `calculate_cocktail_abv` in https://tttkmbb.com/openapi.json
- Authentication: none. Rate limit: fair use, see https://tttkmbb.com/docs/rate-limits.md.

## MCP

- Server: `https://tttkmbb.com/mcp` (Streamable HTTP, JSON-RPC 2.0, no auth)
- Tool:  `run_calculator` with `{"calculator_id": "cocktail-abv", "inputs": {…}}`

## Example

- Martini: 60 ml gin 40 % + 30 ml vermouth 18 %, 25 % dilution: inputs `{"ingredient_volumes_ml":[60,30],"ingredient_abvs_percent":[40,18],"dilution_percent":25,"servings":1}` → `{"alcohol_ml":29.4,"total_volume_ml":112.5,"final_abv_percent":26.13,"alcohol_grams":23.2,"standard_drinks_us":1.66,"standard_drinks_au":2.32,"units_uk":2.9}`
- Margarita batch for 4: 200 ml tequila 40 %, 100 ml triple sec 30 %, 100 ml lime, 20 % dilution: inputs `{"ingredient_volumes_ml":[200,100,100],"ingredient_abvs_percent":[40,30,0],"dilution_percent":20,"servings":4}` → `{"alcohol_ml":110,"total_volume_ml":480,"serving_volume_ml":120,"final_abv_percent":22.92,"alcohol_grams_per_serving":21.7,"standard_drinks_us":1.55}`

```
GET https://tttkmbb.com/api/v1/calculate/cocktail-abv?ingredient_volumes_ml=60%2C30&ingredient_abvs_percent=40%2C18&dilution_percent=25&servings=1
```

## Limitations

You need the alcohol of a fermented batch from gravity readings (use homebrew-abv). Results are informational and must not be used to decide whether someone is fit to drive or how much is safe to drink. Ethanol density 0.789 g/ml at 20 °C; the small volume contraction when mixing alcohol and water is ignored. Dilution defaults to 25 %, a typical value for a shaken or stirred cocktail; actual dilution depends on ice, time and technique. Informational only: results must not be used to decide whether anyone is fit to drive. All values are computed from the formula above; no measurement or live data is involved.

## FAQ

**How much water does ice really add?**

Measured dilution is roughly 20–25 % for a stirred drink and 25–30 % for a shaken one (shaking chips ice faster); a drink served on the rocks keeps diluting as it sits. Set dilution_percent to 0 for neat pours or pre-diluted batches.

**Why do standard drinks differ between countries?**

A US standard drink is 14 g of pure alcohol, an Australian one 10 g and a UK unit 8 g (10 ml); other countries use 8–20 g. Compare grams of alcohol when in doubt.

**Can I enter ounces?**

Convert first: 1 US fl oz = 29.57 ml, so a 2 oz pour is 59.1 ml. Using 30 ml per ounce introduces only about 1.5 % error.

## Related

- [Homebrew ABV Calculator](https://tttkmbb.com/food/homebrew-abv.md) — Alcohol content of home-fermented beer, cider or mead.
- [Cooking Measurement Converter](https://tttkmbb.com/food/cooking-converter.md) — Convert fluid ounces or cups to millilitres.
- [Calories from Macros Calculator](https://tttkmbb.com/food/calories-from-macros.md) — Alcohol grams contribute 7 kcal/g to the drink's energy.