Dash (cocktails)
A dash ( English pinch, splash , plural dashes ) is a small splash or a small shot of a liquid. The technical term is mainly used in German to indicate the quantity for the preparation of cocktails .
The Dash unit is common especially when using cocktail bitters . They are often sold in bottles that have a plastic cap with a small hole under the lid through which only a few milliliters of liquid escape when swirling vigorously . In addition, there are refillable dash bottles with a special spout that can also be used to dose a dash. Originally, they were partially closed with a cork, into which, instead of a metal tube, a hollow bird feather was inserted, which served as an outlet. With the help of some Dashes cocktail bitters, the mixed drinks known at the time under the name Sling (consisting of a spirit , water and sugar) were refined in the early 19th century , resulting in the new group of drinks called "cocktails" - the name for bittered slings Bitter spirits. It was not until much later that “cocktail” became a generic term for a variety of mixed drinks. It is possible that dash bottles with quills contributed to the naming of these cocktails, perhaps because cock feathers were also used - and cocktail literally means "cock's tail".
While larger amounts of liquid in cocktail recipes are usually given in absolute units (for example ml = milliliter , cl = centiliter , BL = bar spoon = about 0.5 cl, oz. = Ounce , etc.), the exact amount of liquid in a dash is not uniformly defined, the information serves rather as a guide. With cocktail bitters, the liquid that escapes when the bottle is swiveled once differs depending on the manufacturer and the level of the bottle, but is usually between a few drops and a few milliliters.
When specifying quantities for syrups , juices, liqueurs and spirits, a dash in cocktail recipes can also mean larger quantities, namely the quantity that escapes from the spout (compared to special dash bottles ) when the bottle is swiveled once . In this respect, the dash unit for such ingredients should be understood as a shot rather than a splash. A larger shot, for example from an ordinary bottle without a spout, is more likely to be referred to as a splash in English .
Individual evidence
- ↑ Stephan Hintz : Cocktail Art. The future of the bar. Fackelträger Verlag, Cologne 2014, ISBN 978-3-7716-4553-3 , p. 27.
- ^ Stephan Hinz: Cocktail Art. The future of the bar. Fackelträger Verlag, Cologne 2014, ISBN 978-3-7716-4553-3 , p. 55.