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Bartending (heck, cocktails in general) is a subject that has more appeal to the average person than, let’s say. doing the laundry. But how much do they really know about the craft?
We conducted a bartending quiz among consumers recently and got several hundred replies.
Here are a few highlights.
Question 1: What is the standard measure of alcohol in a mixed drink?
The two top responses were 1 ½ oz. (our position) and 1 oz. (a little skimpy, but acceptable). Together, those covered about 80% of the responses. Some people resorted to bar lingo which is true but not that helpful for the novice…a “jigger” was a popular answer, as was “a shot”. On the teetotaler side, one consumer said 2 tablespoons, and on the extreme side, another said 23 ounces (we hope that was a typo).
Question 2: Name a movie and a television show that have bartenders as main characters.
The highest % of answers reflected the top choices we had in mind…Cocktail (the movie) with Tom Cruise, and Cheers. Fortunately a couple of people had the good taste to mention Casablanca. Coyote Ugly got many mentions. And then there was Gunsmoke. How did we miss that episode?
Question 3: What is America’s most popular cocktail?
The last time we checked it was still the margarita (and our sales figures confirm this). Our consumers were well informed on this one. And we assume that there answers reflected the patterns of their immediate friends and the bars that they visit. In a virtual statistical tie were these drinks…
Margarita
Cosmo
Martini
Rum & Coke
7&7 (#1 by far in the 1970s)
Bloody Mary
Other vote getters included Sex on the Beach, Cuba Libra, and Daiquiris.
Question 4: What is the correct alcohol to use in a daiquiri?
This was just a good way to see if our respondents had basic cocktail knowledge (and were still paying attention). We asked what the spirit typically used in a Daiquiri was. Wow, people know this stuff. More than 95% of people correctly said rum. Many even specified specific brand names or styles (such as “light rum”).
Question 5: Now the question that really counts. How much should you tip the bartender?
The 3 top answers were:
20% 35%
15% 23%
$1.00 Per drink 24%
The other 18% ranged from the very generous ($2.00 of more per drink) to the penny pinchers (10% or less). Our favorite was Ryan Beardon whose answer was 100%.. We suspect maybe he’s been behind the bar at some point.
In our follow up email to all participants, we’ll be spreading the message that 20% is today’s polite tip.
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