Abstract
This small study investigates how much alcohol women consume when they have a glass of wine. Hotels in an inner city suburb of Melbourne were visited and their most commonly used wine glass was measured. Three major glass distributors and the Australian Hotels Association were asked about the size of commonly used wine glasses. Eighty‐six women measured and recorded the amount of alcohol they drank in a 2‐week prospective beverage diary. This study shows that, on average, wine glasses used in licensed premises such as hotels are larger than a standard drink. When at home participants, on average, drank more than a standard drink when consuming wine, champagne, spirits or liqueurs, but they drank less than a standard drink when drinking beer, cider and fortified wine. Wine drinkers, who are often women, cannot rely solely on counting their glasses of wine to keep them below the recommended number of standard drinks when in social situations, such as at hotels and private dwellings.