DISCLAIMER

The information contained in this guide is for informational

purposes only.

The material in this guide may include information, products or

services by third parties. Third Party Materials comprise of the
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assume responsibility or liability for any Third Party Material or
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The publication of such Third Party Materials does not constitute my

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expression of my own opinion of that material.

No part of this publication shall be reproduced, transmitted, or sold

in whole or in part in any form, without the prior written consent
of the author. All trademarks and registered trademarks appearing
in this guide are the property of their respective owners.

© 2012 RIS Media.

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FROM THE
AUTHOR
WELCOME!
Congratulations on finding my website and signing up for my
newsletter. Whether you already have some knowlegde of the
bartending profession or you're just starting out, you have taken the
first step in becoming a bartender. And for that I applaud you!

In a couple of days, you will start receiving my newsletter which

features exclusive information on how to become a bartender and
land yourself a well-paid bartending job. I will be focussing on
several aspects of the bartending profession and teach you all there
is to know. It's up to you to keep reading and decide whether the
tools I'm giving you are worth your time.

You will receive valuable tips and tricks and many bartender secrets
regular people don't know about. Just keep reading and keep
practicing, and I promise your bartending skills will improve faster
than you ever imagined.

This eBook features the basic bartending terms and methods

explained. It will introduce you to the bartending profession, help
you understand drink recipes and prove to be a good base for
further education.

Enjoy!

Kind regards,
Phillip Montero

3 www.howtobecomeabartendertoday.com
TERMS AND
METHODS
EXPLAINED
There’s more to mixing drinks than just pouring the ingredients into
a glass. In this section you will find the mixology terms and methods
explained. Remember, practice makes perfect. So if you do not
succeed the first time, dust yourself off and try again.

BLEND
When a cocktail recipe calls for
you to 'blend ingredients with ice',
place ingredients and ice into a
blender. Keep in mind you should
always place liquid ingredients in
the blender first, adding ice and/
or ice-cream last. Using crushed ice
over cubed ice is a smart choice, as
this lessens wear on the blades of
the blender. Blend the ingredients
until a smooth, even consistency
is achieved. If you own a blender
with variable speed, always start
blending on slow speed and build
up gradually.

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 BUILD
Many cocktail books listing recipes
will use the term 'build drink'. The
term refers to making a cocktail
by combining the ingredients in a
drinking glass, instead of shaking
or blending it first.

DUST
Dusting a drink means sprinkling
ground nutmeg, chocolate powder
or some other ingredient on top
of it. When dusting with nutmeg,
you may use powdered product,
although it is always best to grate
fresh nutmeg over the drink.

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 FINE STRAIN
Fine straining, also called 'double
straining', is an additional straining
achieved by using a regular tea
strainer held between the shaker
and the glass. This method ensures
that small fragments of fruit and
chunks of ice don't end up in the
cocktail. In other words, your drink
is strained through a Hawthorne
strainer (Boston shakers) or built in
strainer (standard shakers) and an
additional strainer – hence the term
double straining.

FLAME
To ignite, flambé or flame a drink refers to setting a drink alight. You
should exercise extreme caution when setting fire to drinks. Never
attempt to move a drink which is still alight and be careful not to
knock over a lit drink. Before drinking, make sure to cover the glass
in order to suffocate the flame. You should warn your customers
that the rim of the glass may be hot after igniting a drink.

FLOAT
Floating refers to adding a final
ingredient on top of a cocktail by
slowly pouring it over a spoon (see
Layer method).

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 FREE POURING
The term 'free pouring' refers
to pouring measures of drink
without using a physical measure.
For experienced bartenders, this
may be a good technique, but in
the wrong hands this is a terribly
inaccurate method of pouring
measures. I suggest you always use
a measure (see Shot further in this
guide).

FROSTING
This term may refer to two different things: the frosted effect on
glasses stored in ice or a refrigerator and coating the rim of a glass
with salt or sugar.

FRUIT JUICE
Before cutting lemons and limes,
roll the fruit on a surface (such as a
cutting board) under the palm of
your hand. This method will enable
you to squeeze more juice from the
fruit.

If you are using an electric spinning

juicer, make sure not to grind the
pith as this can make the juice
bitter and ruin your cocktail.

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 GARNISH
Garnishes are used to decorate the
cocktail. Usually, they are anchored
to the rim of the glass. The proper
garnish will enhance the overall
look and appeal of your cocktail
and the aroma and flavor as well.

Garnishes should be edible, so

please don't use the cliché paper
parasols amateurs tend to use.

A list of the most popular garnishes

would include strawberries,
cherries, lime wheels, pineapple
and apple chunks, mint and basil
leaves, olives and coffee beans.

The term wheel refers to a circular

slice of citrus fruit.

A wedge is a small chunk of fruit.

The term split refers to the cut in a

piece of fruit used to fix it to the rim
of the glass.

A twist is a narrow sliver of fruit zest

twisted over the drink and then
dropped in.

A horse's neck garnish is a

continuous spiral of the peel of
either a lemon, an orange or a lime,
placed so as to overhang the rim of
the glass.

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 GLASS CHILLING
You should chill all your glassware
in a freezer prior to mixing drinks.
When this is not possible or you
simply forgot to do it, you could
chill your glasses by filling the
glasses with ice and topping up
with water. Discard ice and water
when you are ready to pour the
drink in the glass. Until then, leave
the glass cooling while you're
preparing the drink.

GLASS PREHEATING
In case you need to warm a glass ready for a hot cocktail, place a bar
spoon in the glass and fill it with hot water. Don't remove the spoon
before discarding water and pouring the drink. The spoon helps
disperse the 'shock' of the heat.

HANDLING
GLASSWARE
Glasses should always be handled
by the stem or base. This not only
prevents leaving finger marks on
the glass, but makes sure your body
temperature doesn't affect the
temperature of the cocktail. Make
sure your glassware is clean and
free of chips.

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 MUDDLE
When a cocktail recipe calls for you
to muddle, this refers to crushing
of fruits with a muddler. Push down
on the muddler with a twisting
action. If you don't own a muddler,
use a blunt tool similar to a pestle.

LAYER
Layering refers to a method by
which ingredients are poured into
a drinking glass to form layers. Each
next ingredient that is carefully
poured into the glass will float on
the previous layer.

Layering an ingredient can be

achieved in two ways. The first
method is to hold the bowl end of
a bar spoon (or a large tea spoon)
in contact with both the surface of
the drink and the side of the glass.
While doing so, pour carefully over
the spoon.

The second method is to pour

the ingredient down the twisted
handle of a bar spoon. In this case,
make sure that the flat disc-shaped
end of the spoon is in contact with
the surface of the previous layer.

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 SALT/SUGAR RIM
Some recipes require you to coat
the rim of the glass with salt, sugar
or some other ingredient. You could
either use a rimmer (professional
tool) or dip the glass into a saucer
of salt or sugar.

Before dipping, moisten the rim

of the glass. Whip a wedge of lime
round the rim if you're coating the
rim with salt. For sugar and other
ingredients such as chocolate, use
an orange slice instead of lime. To
moisten the rim, you could also
place upturned glass on a sponge
moist with water.

SHAKE
Some recipes will tell you to 'shake
with ice and strain'. Shaking is
always done with cubed ice.

Always fill your shaker two-thirds

full of fresh ice, add all ingredients
and shake briskly. Strain the liquid
into a drinking glass, leaving the
cubed ice behind in the shaker.

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 Shaking a drink is done for the
purpose of chilling and diluting
the drink. The dilution is just
as important as using the right
proportions of ingredients. Using
too little ice will result in an over-
diluted cocktail, as your ice will
quickly melt in the shaker. For more
information on using ice, please
read the next chapter.

While cocktail shaking is a fun

activity, take care of how you hold
your shaker. Losing your grip while
shaking will not only make a huge
mess, but could also cause injury
to those close by. Not to mention
that it would also be embarrassing.
Always hold your shaker with two
hands (despite what you may have
seen in a cocktail bar) and never
shake fizzy ingredients. There are
two types of shakers available: the
Boston shaker and the standard
shaker.

SHAKER: BOSTON
A Boston shaker consists of two
cones, one made of glass and the
other stainless steel.

Here's a step-by-step guide on how

to use a Boston shaker:

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 1) Combine ingredients in the
glass part of the shaker, also called
a 'Boston glass'. Before adding
ingredients, make sure to fill your
shaker two-thirds full of fresh
cubed ice.

2) Place the metal half of the shaker

over the top of the glass half. Tap
the top lightly with the heel of your
hand. This will create a seal.

3) Start shaking with one hand on

top and one on the bottom. Make
sure that the glass part is always on
top while shaking and is pointing
away from guests.

4) Keep shaking for a count of

approximately 20 seconds. Hold
the metal part of the shaker in your
hand and tap the side where you
estimate the glass rim sits. This will
break the seal between the glass
half and metal half, allowing you to
open the shaker. If the shaker can't
be opened, don't panic. Turn the
shaker one quarter turn and repeat
the process.

5) Place a Hawthorne strainer over

the top of the metal container and
strain the liquid into chilled glass.

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 SHAKER:
STANDARD
A standard shaker consists of three
parts, a flat-bottomed conical base
or 'can', a top with a built-in strainer
and a cap.

Here's a step-by-step guide on how

to use a standard shaker:

1) Fill the base of the shaker two-

thirds full of fresh cubed ice. Add all
ingredients.

2) Place the top on the base and

close the cap firmly.

3) Start shaking with two hands,

holding one hand on the top and
the other on the bottom of the
shaker. The top should always stay
on top while shaking and point
away from guests.

4) Shake for a count of around 20

seconds. Lift off the cap, hold the
top with one finger and pour the
drink into chilled glass through the
built in strainer.

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 SHOT
A shot is 1oz measure (US) or 25ml
measure (Europe). It really doesn't
matter what measure you use as a
shot, as long as you use the same
measure for all of the ingredients.
That way, the proportions of one
ingredient to the other remains as
intended in the recipe.

If you're using a thimble measure,

fill to the rim for one shot. One
eight of shot equals one bar spoon.
You will probably find it easier to
use a bar spoon than to judge at
what point your measure is one
eight full.

SPIRIT
A spirit is what an unsweetened,
distilled, alcoholic beverage with an
alcohol content of at least 20% ABV
(alcohol by volume) is called.

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 STIR
Some recipes call for you to 'stir
with ice and strain'. In this case, you
will need to use a bar spoon and
a mixing glass. If you don’t have a
suitable mixing glass, you could use
the glass half of a Boston shaker.

Twirl the bar spoon gently between

thumb and finger, causing it to
rotate inside the mixing glass,
gently stirring the drink. Some
bartenders prefer to use the flat
end of the bar spoon to stir a drink.
In this case, place the flat end on
top of the ice in the mixing glass.
Start to stir working the spoon
down the drink as you go.

Once you're done, strain the drink

into a chilled glass by using a
Hawthorne strainer.

STRAIN
When using a Boston shaker, strain
the drink into chilled glass by using
a Hawthorne strainer.

A standard shaker has a built-in

strainer which is used to strain the
drink into glass.

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FINAL WORDS
If you've made it this far, you're a rock star. Seriously!

Dont worry if you don't understand everything right away. You'll

come across these terms and methods throughout your education,
so there's more than enough time to fully understand what each
and every thing means.

As I already promised, you'll receive my first newsletter in a matter

of days. It will guide you in the right direction, give you exclusive
infomation on how to become a bartender, prove to be a valuable
step by step guide, teach you bartending tips, tricks and secrets,
and help you land a well-paid dream job as a bartender.

If you feel that it's not helping you develop the skills you need, you
can unsubscribe at any time.

So sit tight and keep reading.

Until then, keep smiling.

Kind regards,
Phillip Montero

17 www.howtobecomeabartendertoday.com
IMAGE
LICENSING
All following images CC: Attribution 2.0 Generic http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en
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GARNISH (8) Attribute © Chris Corwin: the perfect martini: www.flickr.com/photos/flickerbulb/95054208.

BLEND (4) Used as part of the Amazon Affiliates Program. ALL OTHER IMAGES WITHOUT MENTION Licensed from iStockphoto.

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