How much alcohol is in a drink?
The alcohol content of drinks can vary enormously. It depends on the type, size and strength of the drink.
Units are the official measurement of alcoholic beverages in the UK. A 'unit' is equivalent to 8 grams of pure alcohol. But the alcohol volume in products varies a lot. It's not as simple as one drink = one unit. Some strong beers contain nearly 3 units per pint rather than the 2 units found in ordinary strength lager. The measures may vary too (a 'double' vodka will have double the units), while a large glass of wine (175ml) can be over 2 units.
Here are some examples.
You can also work out how many units are in a drink using this calculation (*ABV = alcohol by volume), or try the 'unit calculator' at http://www.drinkaware.co.uk/howmany.php:
volume of glass/bottle (ml) x ABV* (%)
1000
1 unit = half a pint of ordinary strength lager, beer or cider (284ml at 3.5% ABV)
1.5 units = 330ml bottle of beer, lager or cider (4 or 5% ABV)
3.5 to 4 units = 440ml can of strong beer, lager or cider (8 or 9% ABV)
1.5 units = a small glass of wine (125ml at 12% ABV)
1 unit = single measure of spirit (25ml at 40% ABV) or 10ml of pure alcohol
1.4 units = 'ready to drink' spirit-based drink (275ml at 5% ABV)
