How Much Champagne to Get Drunk? Fizzy to Dizzy

by Dane Wilson | Last Updated: November 1, 2021

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Anytime there is a celebration, you’re bound to hear the characteristic champagne cork pop. It’s a fact of life. But when you’re feeling tipsy five or six toasts into the evening, it’s a little too late to wonder how many glasses of champagne get you drunk. Trust us, six flutes is too much for you—or anyone, for that matter.

Before you get surrounded by flutes and absolutely wasted, you should consider how much champagne you need to drink to get drunk.

Table of Contents

• What is Champagne?
  • Types of Champagne:
• Does Champagne Get You Drunk?
• Hit The Head: Champagne Alcohol Content
• What Determines Intoxication?
  • Factors Determining Intoxication
• Wrapping Up
• FAQs
• POPSUGAR’s Say On Champagne Getting You Buzzed Quicker

What is Champagne?

Champagne is a variety of sparkling white wine produced within the Champagne region of France. Champagne uses chardonnay, pinot meunier, and pinot noir grapes to create a classic flavor. Sugar from the grapes and yeast produce the carbon dioxide that gives champagne its fizz. Additionally, you taste an effervescent array, ranging from apple, almond, and citrus. Often, champagne is a color between white, yellow, and pink.

Do not confuse champagne with other sparkling wines, such as cava (Spain), spumante or prosecco (Italy), or sekt (Austria and Germany). Only sparkling wine crafted in France is rightly and legally called champagne.

Types of Champagne:

• Brut Nature: Hardly any sugar. Bone dry.
• Extra Brut: Very dry with little sweetness (but more than Brut Nature).
• Brut: A slightly dry wine that is the most popular kind.
• Extra Seco/Extra Dry: Sweeter than brut and contain around 12-17 grams of sugar in a liter.
• Seco/Dry: Despite the name, this is a considerably sweet champagne with about 17-32 grams/liter of sugar.
• Demi-Seco/Demi-Dry: Among the sweetest of champagnes, this type has 32-50 grams of sugar in a liter.
• Dulce/Doux/Sweet: The sweetest champagne available. You get around 50 grams or more sugar per liter.

Since the sugar in the champagne is added after fermentation, there is no effect on the drink’s alcohol-by-volume (ABV).

Does Champagne Get You Drunk?

Instead of thinking about how much champagne to get drunk, you should be asking yourself, “Does champagne get you drunk?” The answer is yes, obviously. Anything with alcohol in it has the potential of getting you tipsy or blacking you out. Drink enough, and you could lose your awareness and memories of the evening.

If it’s a celebration, blacking out is probably not the goal.

People also talk about how champagne goes “straight to the head.” Interestingly, the University of Surrey in Guildford conducted a study where they found that champagne gets you drunk faster than red or white wine.

It’s assumed that the carbon dioxide in champagne accelerates the speed alcohol travels to the intestines.

Hit The Head: Champagne Alcohol Content

Now that you know that champagne and other carbonated alcoholic beverages make you “hit the head” faster, it’s time to talk about how much alcohol you’re consuming. The ABV of traditional champagne ranges between 11-13%. On average, one serving of champagne is around 12.2% ABV. That puts it in between white wine (11.5% ABV) and red wine (12.5% ABV).

One serving size of champagne is around 150 ml, which is equal to 1.4 standard drinks. If you have two drinks, you have actually consumed closer to 3 servings. A single 750 ml bottle contains about 7.1 standard drinks.

What does that translate to in terms of drunkenness? Two drinks for someone under 250 pounds (113 kg). If you are around 100-120 pounds (45-54 kg), it’s more like one and a half glasses of champagne.

What Determines Intoxication?

Does that mean two drinks of champagne is always going to get you drunk at the same rate? Could you have some days where you don’t get drunk as fast with champagne? Sure.

See, there are a couple of factors that determine how intoxicated you get from champagne (and all other alcoholic beverages). With these factors, you can determine how much champagne to get drunk easily. On the other hand, use this information to set a personal limit.

Factors Determining Intoxication

• What you have eaten. One study found that if you drink any kind of alcohol—champagne included—on an empty stomach, the alcohol will go directly to the bloodstream. Conversely, if you eat something before drinking, the rate of absorption is dampened. This doesn’t stop you from getting drunk, though.
• Age. The older you are, the harder that celebratory champagne is going to hit. There are two reasons. First, age normally means a decrease in the body’s water content. Less water means less blood volume for the alcohol. Second, your liver doesn’t metabolize alcohol as efficiently.
• Gender. Males and females process alcohol differently, and women tend to have a lower tolerance.
• Physical condition. If you have more muscle than average, your BAC levels will be lower than someone who has more fat. Keep in mind that if you lose a lot of weight, however, alcohol is going to hit you harder than before.
• Rate of consumption. Your body can only break down about one drink of champagne an hour. If you’re slamming down flute after flute within an hour, you’re going to get more drunk faster than the person nursing their champagne.
• What medications you are on. Many prescribed and OTC medications interact with alcohol. Be sure to ask your doctor about consuming champagne while taking prescription drugs.
• Family history. If you have had family members who struggle with alcohol consumption, you may as well. Be sure to speak with a medical professional if you’re worried about alcohol abuse or alcohol-related diseases.
• Race. Some races have a unique genetic makeup that makes metabolizing alcohol more difficult.

Wrapping Up

How much champagne to get drunk? Oh, about two glasses of bubbly should do it. That will put you over the legal amount of 0.08 BAC. This is why drinking a bottle of champagne on your own is never a good idea! Now that you know the bubbly can make you drunk even faster than regular wine, you might want to enlist a designated driver for your next celebration.

FAQs

POPSUGAR’s Say On Champagne Getting You Buzzed Quicker