Size Matters: An Exhaustive & Easy-To-Follow Guide To Champagne Bottle Sizes
— 13 December 2022

Size Matters: An Exhaustive & Easy-To-Follow Guide To Champagne Bottle Sizes

— 13 December 2022
Randy Lai
WORDS BY
Randy Lai

If you’re marvelling at how ridiculous the premise of this article sounds, then don’t worry – we know. Point of fact, we can almost hear your internal monologue right now.

Likely something along the lines of: “When will I ever need the historic terminology for 15 litres of Champagne on hand… who even needs that much Champagne anyways?” 

RELATED: These Champagne Magnums Will Make You Look Like An Absolute Hero At Your Next Christmas Do

To answer the latter of those two questions: Grand Prix drivers, Leo DiCaprio, Supersnake types at the club (et al.). But as for the former? Point taken. You know a storage format is well and truly cooked when it has been named after a Babylonian king. Still, who knows when such esoteric knowledge might come in handy?

On the off-chance you’re imbibing like it’s the Roaring Twenties, here’s a list of the most large-format bottle sizes for Champagne, Bordeaux and the majority of fine wines in general:

NameVolume (in litres)Description
Demi0.375Also known as a “half” bottle.
Standard0.750The most commonly available format at retailers.
Magnum1.5Popular large-format size for Champagne. Equivalent to two (2) standard bottles.
Jeroboam3.0Biblical naming convention. Named for the first King of the Northern Kingdom of Israel (10th century BC). Equivalent to four (4) standard bottles.
Rehoboam4.5Biblical naming convention. Named for the King of Judah (10th century BC). Equivalent to six (6) standard bottles.
Methuselah6.0Biblical naming convention. Ancestor of Noah and the oldest living man recorded in the Bible. Equivalent to eight (8) standard bottles.
Salmanazar9.0Biblical naming convention. Neo-Assyrian king (858-824 BC). Equivalent to 12 standard bottles.
Balthazar12.0Biblical naming convention. One of three “Wise Men” to present gits at Jesus’ nativity. Equivalent to 16 standard bottles.
Nebuchadnezzar15.0Biblical naming convention. Named for the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar II (605-562 BC). Equivalent to 20 standard bottles.
Solomon18.0Biblical naming convention. King of Israel, son of David. Equivalent to 24 standard bottles.
Sovereign25.0Reputedly created in 1987 by Taittinger to commemorate the launch of the world’s then-largest cruise ship, “Sovereign of the Seas.” Equivalent to 35 standard bottles.
Primat/Goliath27.0Biblical naming convention. Philistine giant killed in single combat by David. Equivalent to 36 standard bottles.
Melchizedek30.0Largest Champagne format. Biblical naming convention. King of Salem. Equivalent to 40 standard bottles.

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Randy Lai
WORDS by
Following 6 years in the trenches covering consumer luxury across East Asia, Randy joins Boss Hunting as the team's Commercial Editor. His work has been featured in A Collected Man, M.J. Bale, Soho Home, and the BurdaLuxury portfolio of lifestyle media titles. An ardent watch enthusiast, boozehound and sometimes-menswear dork, drop Randy a line at [email protected].

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