Shot glass - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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Shot glass
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A shot glass is a small glass designed to hold or measure

spirits or liquor, which is either drunk straight from the glass
("a shot") or poured into a cocktail. A "shot" of liquor is not
the same as a "shooter".
Shot glasses decorated with a wide variety of toasts,
advertisements and humorous pictures are popular souvenirs
and collectibles.

Contents
1 Name origin

Three shot glasses of varying shape and size

2 Sizes
3 Shot-measuring tools
3.1 Jigger
3.2 Kitchen shot
4 See also
5 References
6 External links

Name origin

Shot glasses with a variety of designs. Shot

glasses such as these are often collected as
novelty items

The Oxford English Dictionary's first citation for the term "shot glass" is in The New York Times during the
1940s, but the earliest known written reference was in a 1913 book by Dr. Jehu Z. Powell, " A History of Cass
County Indiana from its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time" [Lewis Publishing Company, 1913]. On page
655 Dr. Powell recounts an incident c. 1857 in the small town of New Waverly, Indiana, occasioned by a local
man attempting to open a saloon against fierce local temperance opposition. The initial stock was a barrel of
whiskey, which had arrived by train and was sitting on the open freight platform awaiting delivery to the
would-be barkeeper. A local man who was an ardent temperance supporter fired his rifle from an upper floor
window in his house and shot a hole in the barrel, draining it of its contents. "The remedy was effectual, and the
saloon was not opened, and ever after, when the boys wanted a drink they would ask for a 'shot of redeye.'" New
Waverly is located just outside of Logansport, Indiana, which was an important transportation hub for northern
Indiana in the 19th century as a riverboat port on the Wabash River and a stop on the Wabash and Erie Canal, as
well as an important railroad engine maintenance and repair center during the first half of the 20th century. This
intensive involvement in transportation could account for the gradual dissemination of an otherwise obscure
local expression over a much broader geographic area.
Several examples also exist from the 1930s.[1][2] However, although it was used by some,[3][4] the term
apparently did not come into common usage until much later.

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Many references from the 1800s describe giving a jigger of whiskey or rum to workers who were digging
canals. Most shot glasses are found in the United States, but shot glasses from before the 1940s are very rare.[5]
Before Prohibition in the U.S. in the early to mid 1900s, thin-sided whiskey glasses were common. After
Prohibition, these were replaced by shot glasses with a thick base and thick sides.
Because the word shot also means "dose" or "small amount", it may simply be that these small glasses are
called shot glasses because they hold small, powerful amounts. However, there are a range of more complex
stories about the origin of the style of glass and its name. Few of them stand up to much scrutiny either they
place the origin decades before the term appeared in print, or they describe an item that had nothing to do with
drinking liquor:

Sizes

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Country

Small

Australia

Canada

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shot_glass

Single

30 mL

28.41 mL (1
ounce[8]) is a 42.61 mL
(1.5 ounces)
short shot
(pony shot)

Finland

40 mL

Germany

20 mL

Greece

45 mL

Double

Notes

60 mL

A single shot is sometimes called a "nip".[6] At

30 mL, a typical spirit with 40 percent alcohol is
roughly equivalent to one Australian standard
drink.[7]

71 mL (2.5
ounces)

In Canada, a "shot" generally refers to the province's

definition of a "standard drink" under liquor licenses.
Although sizes may vary, most provinces cite
amounts similar to Ontario's guidelines of 0.6 oz. or
17 mL of pure alcohol; since a "shot" is typically a
spirit with 40 percent alcohol, this makes the shot 1.5
oz. or 42.62 mL (though many establishments serve
a lower "standard drink" of only 1 oz.).[9] A double
shot in North America may be either 2.5 or 3.0 fluid
ounces.[10] A smaller 1.0 fl. oz. shot is usually
referred to as a "pony shot" or "short shot".[11]
In Finland, the maximum amount of strong alcohol
restaurants are allowed to serve is regulated by law
to one 40 mL portion at a time per customer.
Doubles cannot be legally served.[12]

40 mL

In Germany, shot glasses (German: Schnapsglas,

Pinnchen, Stamperl) are smaller.

90 mL

A shot is commonly referred to as a "sfinaki" and it

can be made of one liquor or a cocktail mix. There is
also an 3 oz - "bottoms up" version of "sfinaki",
called "ipovrihio", Greek word for submarine. It's
served in a standard liquor glass half full of blonde
beer, where the bartender adds a glass shot filled
with vodka or whiskey.

Hungary

In Hungarian, shot glasses are called felespohr

20 or 30 mL 40 or 50 mL 80 or 100 mL (feles meaning "half", standing for 0.5 dL),
plinkspohr (for plinka), kupica or stampedli.

India

30 mL

Ireland
Israel

Italy

30 mL

30 mL

30 mL

60 mL

A shot is commonly referred to as a "peg", and is

measured as a "small" (chhota), or a "large" (bud-da)
peg. A 90 mL shot in India is called a Patiala peg.

35.5 mL

71 mL

Derived from the use of a quarter-gill (35.516 mL) as

the traditional Irish spirit measure.

50 or 60 mL

In Israel, the common word for a small shot is '

("chaser").

40 or 60 mL

In Italy, the common word for a shot is cicchetto or,

more informally and used mainly in nightclubs by
young people, shortino. In North Italy, the cicchetto
is the most-common way to taste grappa from at

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Country

Small

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shot_glass

Single

Double

Notes
least two centuries.

Poland

25 mL

Romania

Serbia

50 mL

50 mL

20 mL

30-50 mL

40 mL

100 mL

To take shots in Polish slang is to take po

pidziesitce, meaning to take "by fifties" (50 mL).

100 mL

A single shot is traditionally known in the Romanian

language as unu mic (una mic) or cinzeac,
meaning "a small one". A double shot is simply
called unu (una mare), meaning "one (big)".

5070 mL

A single shot is traditionally known in the Serbian

language as and
, meaning "small glass for rakija" and
"rakija glass", or simply as , meaning
"measure". A double shot is simply called ,
meaning "a double", while the smallest, 20 milliliter
glass, is known as dvojka meaning "two".

60 mL

A single shot is referred to as a fyra, meaning "a

four" and a double is referred to as a sexa, meaning
"a six", as Swedes will generally use centiliters
rather than milliliters for any measure larger than
10 mL

Sweden

20 mL

Slovakia

20 or 25 mL 40 or 50 mL 80 or 100 mL

The most-common single-shot size is the pol deci

(literally, "half a decilitre", 50 mL).

South
Africa

25 mL

United
Kingdom

Shots sold on-premises must contain either 25 mL or

35 mL measures of whisky, gin, rum, or vodka, as
defined in the Weights and Measures Act of 1985.
This requirement does not extend to other spirits. A
25 or 35 mL 50 or 70 mL
2001 amendment allowed a double shot of 70 mL to
be served. Generally, a single measure is equal to
35 mL in Northern Ireland and Scotland and 25 mL
in the rest of the United Kingdom.[13]

United
States

The South African government has an official

definition for the single-shot size.

There is no standard size for a single shot, except in

30 mL
44 mL
89 mL
Utah, where a shot is defined at 1.5 fl. oz.[14]
(1.0 US fl oz) (1.5 US fl oz) (3.0 US fl oz) Elsewhere in the U.S., the standard size is generally
considered to be 1.251.5 fl. oz.[15][16]

Shot-measuring tools
Jigger
A jigger or measure is a bartending tool used to measure liquor, which is typically then poured into a cocktail
shaker. It is named for the unit of liquid it typically measures, a jigger or shot, which measures 112 US fluid

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ounces (44 ml).[17] However, bar jiggers come in other sizes and may not actually measure
a fluid jigger.
A traditional style of jigger is made of stainless steel with two unequal sized opposing
cones in an hourglass shape on the end of a rod. Typically, one cone measures a regulation
single shot, and the other some fraction or multiple with the actual sizes depending on
local laws and customs.

Kitchen shot
A jigger

A small shot glass specifically marketed for kitchen use is graduated in units such as ounce
and half ounce, teaspoons, tablespoons or possibly millilitres. They are useful for recipes
that call for multiples of a smaller unit (e.g. several teaspoons), allowing the dispensing of the amount in a
single measure.[18]

See also
References
1. ^ [1] (http://books.google.co.nz/books?id=A6s3AAAAIAAJ&q=%22shot+glass%22&dq=%22shot+glass%22&
hl=en&ei=cymNTqn0M83QmAWon9UK&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CD8Q6AEwBDge).
"...whiskey and sour, which was served in a 2-ounce "shot" glass...". American Law Reports (annotated), Volume 66
(1930). Lawyers Co-operative Publishing Company (via Google Books).
2. ^ [2] (http://books.google.co.nz/books?id=otQvAAAAMAAJ&q=%22shot+glass%22&dq=%22shot+glass%22&
hl=en&ei=cymNTqn0M83QmAWon9UK&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=6&ved=0CEMQ6AEwBTge).
"He held his shot glass upside down and watched the last few drops of whisky roll down the side of the glass".
Prairie Schooner, Volumes 13-14 (1939). University of Nebraska Press (via Google Books).
3. ^ [3] (http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=JcpQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=kNAMAAAAIBAJ&pg=7199,5547516&
dq=shot-glass&hl=en). "...and brought out a bottle of brandy and a shot glass...". The Portsmouth Times (via Google
News). September 6, 1941.
4. ^ [4] (http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=tO0NAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fnoDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7223,234864&
dq=shot-glass&hl=en). "...characters nursing a shot glass late at night in men's bars...". St. Petersburg Times (via
Google News). August 1, 1955.
5. ^ "The Pre-Prohibition Collector's Resource Site" (http://www.pre-pro.com). Pre-pro.com. Retrieved October 16,
2010.
6. ^ [5] (http://www.alcohol.gov.au/internet/alcohol/publishing.nsf/Content/drinksguide-cnt#spirits)
7. ^ "Standard Drinks Guide" (http://www.health.gov.au/internet/alcohol/publishing.nsf/Content/drinksguide-cnt).
Department of Health and Ageing (Australian). Retrieved April 10, 2011.
8. ^ "Weights and Measures Act" (http://laws.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/W-6/FullText.html). Department of Justice
(Canada). Retrieved November 24, 2011.
9. ^ Smart Serve Ontario: Hospitality Industry Training Organization of Ontario. Smart Serve Ontario: Responsible
Alcohol Beverage Service Training (2002). Queen's Printer for Ontario, p. 6.

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10. ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Units: D" (http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/dictD.html). How Many? A Dictionary of Units of
Measurement. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
11. ^ "Shot Glass" (http://www.webtender.com/db/glass/2). Glass info. The Webtender. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
12. ^ https://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/1994/19941344, 24
13. ^ "1 Unit" (http://213.106.147.101/bdec2/advice/diet/pdf/alcohol.pdf) (PDF format; requires Adobe Reader).
14. ^ "Shotglass Size" (http://www.shotglass.org/). Shotglass.org: a site for shotglasses and other similar items.
Retrieved May 19, 2008. |first1= missing |last1= in Authors list (help)
15. ^ Graham, Colleen. "Shot Glass" (http://cocktails.about.com/od/embellishments/ss/glss_gde_10.htm). Cocktails: The
Glassware Tour. About.com. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
16. ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Units: S" (http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/dictS.html). How Many? A Dictionary of Units of
Measurement. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
17. ^ Feller, Robyn M. (2003). The Complete Bartender. Berkley Books. ISBN 978-0-425-19013-5.
18. ^ "An example of a kitchen shot from a kitchenware manufacturer" (http://www.anchorhocking.com
/prodd_5045_cat_23_kitchen_shot.html). Kitchen shot. Anchor Hocking. Retrieved Feb 1, 2013.

External links
The Shotglass collectors website (http://www.shotglass.org)

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Categories: Collecting Drinkware Volumetric instruments

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