of another commonly used phrase.
When you say your "all out" of wine, beer, 1-inch #10 screws, the term comes from the coal trade along the east coast of England in the 17th/18th/19th centuries.
I'm reading a book sent by an old friend about the history of coastwise trading in that region. You wouldn't believe the number of vessels involved -- hundreds and hundreds. On top of all the other stuff -- corn, foodstuffs, wine, etc., -- coal in enormous quantities was shipped from the mining areas in the north to London and the "Home Counties." Ships were in constant procession -- southbound laden with coal and northbound in ballast. After arriving in London, the ships had to sell their cargoes, and the masters would write to the owners to say that they were a "quarter out," or "half out," etc., and estimate when they would be able to head back north for the next load -- which they could do once they were "all out."
Bye the bye, I have run across dozens of terms in this book I never heard before . . .