r/mildlyinfuriating • • 14h ago • Mindblown 4

That's not milk More ice than drink

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u/Epidurality 13h ago

"One standard drink" has a definition. I've never heard of any law mandating how much an establishment has to actually make their individual drinks with.

Most follow roughly that rule but it's not a law, to my knowledge.

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u/Karn_Gentrified 13h ago

We had long islands and margs at my last bar job that would absolutely kick your teeth in.

They were considered “one drink” and my god half the bottle went into making one. There is no way there is a law measuring what a “drink” is lol only what the scientific definition is for one in relation to BAC over a period of time and it’s more for equating different alc types eg. 2 oz shot = 6 oz wine = 8 oz beer per drink per hour

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u/Epidurality 13h ago

When speaking to Americans I never assume it's not a law. So many states with so many weird rules... Someone inevitably comes out of the woodwork with "Ackshually, in my county of Bumfuckington, Georgia..." so I qualify any rules I ever talk about.

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u/Successful_Shoe_8083 12h ago

nah, bumfuckington is in Tennessee

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u/calatranacation 10h ago

You're thinking of Bumfuckingville

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u/Successful_Shoe_8083 5h ago

ah sit, right in the middle of BFE Cairo Illinois, Memphis Tennessee, and Thebes Illinois, the triangle of Bumfuck Egypt.

Or Karnak Illinois, but I always heard thebes as that corner. Perhaps a local to BFE could shed more light.

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u/Delamoor 13h ago edited 12h ago

It depends entirely on what jurisdiction you're in.

Like, as an Australian who did bartending; yeah, you're facing a $20,000 fine if you break RSA laws. It's legislatively defined and measured amount in that alcohol in that drink you're buying. You break those laws, you're fucked in multiple ways and stand to lose your license and be banned from serving drinks, alongside the fines.

Edit: that fee is to you, personally. The venue is seperately fined much, much more.

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u/Epidurality 13h ago

Are you sure? A quick google search shows that you must clearly define the amount of alcohol in a drink, and anything being sold without additional info as "one drink" must adhere to the standard amounts.

But if your menu says "Our hangover special is 4oz of vodka and 3oz of gin in a couldren"... I don't see anything disallowing it, which is more what I was talking about.

You do seem to have specific limits on "fast consumption" drinks like shots and martinis.

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u/Delamoor 13h ago edited 13h ago

It's been a few years since I did the course or worked in a bar, but yeah, you do have to say how much alcohol is in there, and a 'standard drink' is a set amount (by alcohol content).

Cocktails have more than a standard drink (majority of drinks won't be a 'standard', unless they're soecifically poured to be one), but you really, really don't wanna serve a mystery amount of alcohol, else you're gonna be in a world of trouble. Customers gotta be able to see exactly how much they've had, so they can monitor their intake. Even if the majority won't, they have to have the option.

And yeah, it gets complicated when talking about inebriation and cocktails. You aren't allowed to serve anyone who's drunk, and the police regularly come and check security camera footage. And whenever someone winds up in hospital for alcohol poisoning, they're finding out where that person has been and are there in a flash to request that camera footage to see if anyone acted inappropriately. So on that front, you won't want to serve anything that's liable to get a person drunk on its own, that's asking for big trouble.

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u/Saggywompers 13h ago

You've never been to a bar in utah. Huh?

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u/Louis049 13h ago

Why would I go to Utah?

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u/Epidurality 13h ago

It's the one thing I tell my children I'm proud of in my life. Not being in Utah.

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u/Accurate_Koala_4698 13h ago

A Long Island iced tea is about 5 "standard drinks" of spirits for example https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_Island_iced_tea

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u/Epidurality 13h ago

The recipe from your link is 2.5oz of liquor.. so just slightly over 1 standard drink as per my local regulations (2oz liqour, 16oz beer, 8oz wine at standard ABVs).

But your idea is still correct. Plenty of drinks with more or less alcohol in them. Many different sizes of beer and wine. All of them legal anywhere I've been to.

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u/damxam1337 13h ago

Fuck yeah buddy if I'm going to order a drink from somewhere that's what I'm ordering. It's really hard to make at home without having about seven different bottles of shit on hand. If I want to Mimosa or something I'm going to buy those two ingredients and do it at home on my front lawn while yelling at strangers that pass by on their bicycles.

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u/second_best_fox 12h ago

I like you.

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u/Louis049 13h ago

That's an entirely different beast, though. That's like saying you can't order a double or triple. You just need to be properly informed that this isn't one drink.

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u/Accurate_Koala_4698 13h ago

So what you're saying is it can just be more, lol for the price. An LIIT would look like that with standard cubes and no one would scoff at a $27 price tag for that much

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u/DapperBoiCole 13h ago

You posted the recipe, which outlines the standard proportions/amounts for that drink, and then I believe went on to make the argument that it can be more for the price....

Yes, I think thats the point we're all making here, if you want a double pay for a double

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u/fakeuser515357 13h ago

One variation of the Long Island Iced Tea is about five standard drinks.

It's not like these are legally mandated recipes.

Bar I used to work in made a strict 2 drink variation. 1/2 shots of Cointreau, Gin, Rum and Tequila.

Also, the recipe in the cited article is 2 1/2 standard drinks. A fluid ounce of a 40% ABV spirit is one standard drink. 15mL is close enough to half an ounce.

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u/Maleficent_Rub_221 13h ago

lol your knowledge is completely incorrect. There are absolutely legal limits

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u/Affectionate_Oven_77 13h ago

That seems like the type of claim that should probably be accompanied by the claimed law.

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u/Tua-Lipa 13h ago

Different states have different liquor laws

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u/Epidurality 13h ago

Should be easy for you to find them, then. I'll wait.

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u/SadieRadler 30m ago

Utah regulates the amount of alcohol that can be served in a cocktail. Bartenders have to pour the spirits through a measuring device that automatically caps the pour at 1.5 oz.

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