Wine Bottle Sizes

The names of different wine bottle sizes might sound a little odd to many people, with most named after biblical kings. So, it's no wonder why the different sizes can be a bit confusing.

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The short answer to that question is 15 and sometimes even a few more. If you are looking for a short list, here it is from the smallest to the largest bottle:

• Split
• 750 ml or Standard
• Magnum
• Double Magnum
• Jeroboam (this term is used for sparkling wine only) and Double Magnum
• Rehoboam
• Methuselah
• Salmanazar
• Balthazar
• Nebuchadnezzar
• Melchior
• Solomon
• Sovereign
• Primat
• Melchizedek

To begin, let's start with the smallest bottle of wine, the split.

A split bottle is a quarter of a standard 750 ml bottle of wine, or 187.5 ml. Though you can find a few more expensive bottles of wine sold in splits, this size is mostly used for Champagne and sparkling wine.

These small bottles measure about 2 and a half inches wide and stand around seven and a half inches tall.

This is your average wine bottle and measures about three inches at the bottom and ranges from 11 and a half inches to 12 inches tall.

A magnum holds a liter and a half of wine and is the equivalent of two standard bottles. Magnum bottles often have slightly different shapes based on the wine to be bottled, such as Champagne, Bordeaux or Burgundy. The dimensions of the magnum bottle vary slightly depending on the type of bottle; but, most are going to be about 14 inches tall and a little under four inches wide at the base.

Double magnums hold three liters of sparkling wine, Champagne and wine. This is four standard, or 750 ml, bottles.

A Jeroboam holds four and a half liters of sparkling wine, Champagne and wine. This is six standard, or 750 ml, bottles. The dimensions of a Jeroboam average about 19 and a half inches tall and five inches wide.

This bottle has the same dimensions of a Jeroboam (four and a half liters of wine, or six standard bottles) and is primarily used for Champagne.

The next biggest bottle of wine is a Methuselah. This bottle holds six liters or about eight standard bottles of wine. A Methuselah bottle stands around 22 inches tall.

This nine liter (around 12 standard bottles) bottle is just over two feet tall.

A Balthazar bottle holds 12 liters of wine or 16 standard bottles and measures in at about 28 inches tall.

Holding a whopping 20 standard bottles of wine, or about 16 liters, a Nebuchadnezzar averages around 31 inches tall.

If you're looking to buy a Melchoir bottle, then you may have to search a bit for this 18 liter (24 standard bottles) monster.

A Solomon-sized bottle yields 28 liters, the equivalent of 21 standard-sized bottles of wine.

As wine bottles get bigger, they are used more for decorations or showpieces in wine cellars and restaurants. The sovereign-sized bottle contains approximately 33 and one third liters or 25 standard-sized bottles of wine.

Almost the largest bottle of wine, the primat-sized contains 36 liters or 27 bottles of wine in one gigantic bottle.

Finally, the biggest of them all, the Melchizedek. Some say this bottle truly exists, while others say it's pure myth. Anyway, a Melchidezek holds a whopping 30 liters of wine or 40 standard 750 ml bottles.

Finding the dimensions for the largest bottles of wine is nearly impossible simply because many of these wine bottle sizes are rarely made and rarely sold at your local wine merchant. After you get past a double magnum, the larger sized aren't sold very often…anywhere. Think about it, just how would you pick up and serve the wine out of a 36-liter bottle of wine such as a primat?

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