Don’t know what you’ll receive if you order a whiskey neat, straight, or straight up? Afraid to let the bartender choose the brand for both price and flavor? With so many options and the fact that the terminology of ordering is not consistent among bartenders, ordering a whisky or drink including whisky that you will love is daunting. Clearing up a few terms seems a good place to start.
POUR is a broad term for a serving, such as a pour of whiskey or a pour of wine. The pour can be large or small, such as 4-ounce pour or 1-ounce pour. Like to know how much wine you will receive since this varies from 4 to 5 to 6 ounces and sometimes more? Ask …
***How many ounces are your wine pours?***
SHOT is a 1½-ounce pour of room temperature whisky right out of the bottle, meaning not into a mixer first to add ice, water, or juices, but instead poured directly into the serving container. If unspecified, it is generally a cheaper spirit, meant for quick consumption, and served in a shot glass for less clean up. Of course, you may order a shot of top-shelf and specify any brand you wish or simply say top-shelf. A single shot is 1½ ounces and a double shot is 3 ounces. Without specification, a single will be served.
***I’ll take a shot of whiskey. I’d like a double shot of Irish whiskey.***
Single vs. double. Double is twice the alcohol that would normally be in that drink. A shot 1½ would double to 3 ounces, but neat 2 would double to 4 ounces. In a cocktail or mixed drink, a double only doubles the amount of alcohol but does not change the amounts of the other ingredients. This will obviously change the balance of the finished product so keep that in mind when deciding between a double whiskey sour or two singles.
TOP SHELF means some of the higher price and quality items that the bar stocks and may be applied to any order from a shot to a cocktail. This will vary by bar and inventory.
***I’d like a top-shelf bourbon on the rocks. I’d like a top-shelf mint julep.***
NEAT is different from a shot in size and quality and glassware. It is a 2-ounce pour of room temperature, but often poured into a shot glass first for measure then into a whiskey glass. Meant for sipping, it is generally of higher quality. Specify if you’d like a different quality spirit or a different sized pour. If you’d like 4 ounces, order a double. If you are planning to have 2 drinks, ordering a double is both more cost effective than 2 singles and avoids having to flag the bartender or waiter again. This works well for drinks with no ice, whereas you might prefer the freshened up 2nd drink if ice or mixers are involved.
***I’ll have a double scotch neat.***
UP is 2-ounces of whiskey poured into a shaker (large cup with lid) with ice and shaken to chill, then strained into a glass, leaving the ice behind. The final drink is about 3 ounces of chilled liquid (one ounce water and 2 ounces alcohol).
***House whiskey UP, please. Top shelf scotch UP.***
Straight up and straight. Don’t use these terms as they are open to interpretation and you might not receive what you think you ordered. Straight up sometimes means UP but sometimes means straight as in plain, such as a shot or NEAT. Straight can mean either straight shot or straight up as in chilled. Use NEAT or UP to avoid misinterpretation and you won’t be surprised when your drink arrives.
ON THE ROCKS. Rocks=ice cubes (sometimes crushed as in a margarita, but cubes for whiskey) so your order will include ice cubes in the glass. Ice first, pour over the top. Whiskey on the rocks will be 2-ounces poured either directly from bottle (bartenders have skills) or into a shot glass for measure and then into the glass over the ice.
***Double whisky on the rocks, please.***
WITH A TWIST means the drink is garnished with a thin scrape of a lemon peel (which when scraped forms a twisted curly shape) with no meat of the fruit. This allows the lemon oil from the peel to drift into the drink for a lemon essence. For instance, gin and vermouth are delicate and lemon oil is right for that rather than a slice of lemon that would drop too much juice and overwhelm the drink. Twist means lemon so, if you’d prefer a lime or orange twist, you will need to specify. Lemon goes well with scotch. I love lime with whiskey. Orange goes particularly well with bourbon. Of course you may order with a slice of fruit as well, which would provide more juice for the drink.
***Scotch and soda with a twist, please. Whisky on the rocks with a lime.***
BACK is another drink served on the side in a different glass. Perhaps you’d like a coke, or club soda, or even a beer to go along with your whiskey. Order it as a back. Order scotch and soda to receive them mixed in the same glass. Order scotch with a soda back if you are expecting 2 different glasses, one with scotch and one with club soda. If you’d like a whiskey to sip but also are having snacks and want something to quench thirst, then order. . .
***Whiskey neat, soda back with a twist.*** (sort of like learning to order coffee as you like it)
CHASER is much like a BACK, meaning that it will be in a different vessel, but generally meant to follow a shot rather than be sipped alongside. If you’d like to have a quick taste of whiskey and then a beer to sip, order . . .
***Shot of whiskey, beer chaser.***
A word about pricing and brands. Drink prices vary wildly from dollar shots to $50 neat pours because bottle price, availability, and reputation vary. A whiskey bar or restaurant with a broad and consistent high-end selection will likely have a menu with pricing so you may choose with comfort. Many taverns will not. If you are unsure of pricing, ask for pricing and brand of house whiskey and go from there. It’s good to tell the bartender what you are trying to accomplish. ***I’m new to bourbon so can you recommend an entry cost smooth one? Islay scotch is my drink, what do you have in the $20 range?*** If you know which brand you want, then say it, or ask their pricing of that brand even if you know the general cost. Another fun option is to state what you know you like and ask for a similar recommendation so that you can branch out. ***I love smoky whiskies, please advise. Beam is my favorite but I’d like to try something new that is similar.***
Bottle service can work well for a group. This means the entire bottle is purchased whether finished or not. The details vary, such as customers vs. waitstaff pouring, or are mixers included. Some have additional requirements for bottle service, such as paid table reservations or minimum food order, but it’s worth an ask if you know you will all be drinking the same product and you have enough people to finish the bottle. There are approximately twelve 2-ounce pours in a 750ml (normal-sized) bottle.
I think a fun way to learn is to order a whiskey neat, with a soda back, and bowl with a lemon, lime, and orange wedge. This will give a great comparison of the options. Sip it neat, then add an ice cube and try again, then add a bit of soda and try again, then add a squeeze of citrus and try again.
A whiskey flight is also a great way to sample and they arrive placed in tasting order, meaning lighter and less flavor to heavier and more flavor. It’s great to have them side by side for comparison. Order a soda back and few slices of citrus so the tasting experiment is more complete.
Mention how new your palate is to the scene to help narrow recommendations. They are unlikely to recommend a heavily-peated scotch or a Tennessee whiskey to a new palate, much in the same way that perhaps an espresso would be too bold for an early try at coffee. The comfortable first sips that work for most palates are Irish or Canadian whiskies or bourbons ‘up’ or included in a cocktail. This is not a comment on their complexity, but rather on their elevated levels of sweetness and smoothness and the fact that tastebuds do not process chilled items as potently as room temperature items and that sugar coats the tongue right away rendering the taste buds less likely to pick up bitter flavors.
Mixed drink vs cocktail. Always will be confusion here since the words are often used interchangeably. Mixed drink is something like a jack and coke and a cocktail is a variety of ingredients carefully put together such as an old-fashioned. Even in a mixed drink or cocktail, the flavors make a huge difference just as ingredients in foods do. If at a loss, tell the bartender your preferences (smooth, chilled, sweet, sour, etc.) and take their recommendation for a spin. They know the differences and will be able to guide.
PRO TIP: Sweet drinks need the balance of a less sweet product, so stay away from bourbon or other corn-heavy whiskies in a coke unless you are particularly looking for syrupy sweet, as in an after dinner mixed drink. But a sour drink, such as a whiskey sour, benefits greatly from a corn-based bourbon whiskey for balance. As with all foods and drinks, the ingredients alter the finished product.
Be open to the idea that palates change over time. It’s easy to notice that in foods that we find good over the years as we try new and lose ‘taste’ for old. The same is true for wine and spirits. Of course, mood and occasion affect preferences as well. Mimosa for brunch is light and bubbly and tart, but perhaps sitting by the fire on a cold night calls for a warm bold sipping whiskey or a smooth and sweet bourbon cocktail such as a blackberry smash. A heavy sweet drink as an aperitif often interferes with the appetite as the sugar sits on an empty stomach, but a manhattan works nicely before a meal. Just as people prefer different food flavors, they also prefer different flavors/aromas/characteristics in drinks. It’s not about looking for the most popular spirit because you don’t need to like those. It’s about identifying your preferences and locating drinks with the ingredients that meet your individual preferences.
Up next: Whiskey Making.
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