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Liquor Dispensing:
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Liquor Dispensing
JIGGERS
Jiggers (or shot glass containers) will always have a place in the bar business. They are inexpensive and even in free pour bars, a jigger should be kept near thick liquors such as Kahula or Irish Creme.
In choosing jiggers there are important factors you need to check out. In one consulting job I did, I took the 20 metal jiggers the client was using in his bar and with a very accurate measuring tube, found that 8 of the 20 jiggers were off by up to 25% in their measure. Because of this, drinks were being over poured on a consistent basis.
Metal jiggers are mass produced and are never calibrated. Glass jiggers seem to be somewhat more accurate. In either case, without a device accurate enough to check their volume, you may never know how far off they might be. If you use jiggers, find a way to check their accuracy.
The use of jiggers can be relatively time consuming and is often subject to suspicion by the patron. As far as portioning, a very important factor is often overlooked, and this is were inconsistency and loss of profits occur. Sometimes called the "drag" or "tail" of the pour, this is the period of time the bartender continues to pour after the jigger has reached its capacity. If you had a method to measure the shots including the drag, you would be surprised at the inaccuracy.
The number of portion sizes called for in many cocktails makes it impractical to have a jigger for each shot size needed.
