Quibans 41: Phil Collins

From the Daily Telegraph:

Phil Collins and the rise of mid-lifers drinking their way to oblivion

For Phil Collins it started at home in the long afternoons, drinking a glass of two or wine in front of the England versus West Indies Test match.  In 2011 the former Genesis frontman had decided to retire from music and move to Switzerland to devote himself to his family."I stopped work because I wanted to be a dad at home,” he said in a press conference on Monday in which he announced a comeback tour. “As bad luck would have it, as soon as I retired, my family split up. I didn't have anyone to go home to. That's why I started drinking."

Questions:

1)  How much is one unit of neat alcohol?

2)  How many units will 1 litre of each drink contain?

3)  If someone drinks 15 units in a week then it ought to be spread over 3 days.  That suggests 5 units as a maximum in one session.  How many of each drink is that?

[To be clear: drinking lots wasn't a good thing for Phil Collins.  Don't try this at home.]

Here is the table again, suitable for copying and pasting into a spreadsheet:

Drink	ABV*	Size	Alcohol	ABV	Size in ml	Units of alcohol
Wine	14%	125ml glass	1.8 units	14%	125	1.8
Wine	14%	175ml glass	2.5 units	14%	175	2.5
Wine	14%	250ml glass	3.5 units	14%	250	3.5
Wine	14%	750ml bottle	10.5 units	14%	750	10.5
Beer	2.80%	Pint	1.6 units	2.8%	568	1.6
Strong beer	4.80%	Pint	2.7 units	4.8%	568	2.7
Vodka	40%	25ml shot	1 unit	40%	25	1
Vodka	40%	50ml double	2 units	40%	50	2
Flavoured cider	4%	330ml bottle	1.3 units	4%	330	1.3

Answers:

It appears from the spreadsheet that 10ml of alcohol is 1 unit.  Note the rounding errors. 

Note also how the rounding errors affect the number of units that are in 1 litre of wine, as calculated from the different glass/bottle sizes.

Drink	ABV*	Size	Alcohol	ABV	Size in ml	Units of alcohol	Amount of alcohol	Drinks for 5 units	Units in 1 litre
Wine	14%	125ml glass	1.8 units	14%	125	1.8	17.5	2.8	14.4
Wine	14%	175ml glass	2.5 units	14%	175	2.5	24.5	2	14.3
Wine	14%	250ml glass	3.5 units	14%	250	3.5	35	1.4	14
Wine	14%	750ml bottle	10.5 units	14%	750	10.5	105	0.5	14
Beer	2.80%	Pint	1.6 units	2.8%	568	1.6	15.904	3.1	2.8
Strong beer	4.80%	Pint	2.7 units	4.8%	568	2.7	27.264	1.9	4.8
Vodka	40%	25ml shot	1 unit	40%	25	1	10	5	40
Vodka	40%	50ml double	2 units	40%	50	2	20	2.5	40
Flavoured cider	4%	330ml bottle	1.3 units	4%	330	1.3	13.2	3.8	3.9

Source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/phil-collins-and-the-rise-of-mid-lifers-drinking-their-way-to-ob/