1930 ABC of Mixing Cocktails (ninth impression)

bottles should fit freely in the tubes up to the neck. The ice box, which is to h old the broken ice, should have a false bottom of perforated wood, as an ice pick, even in the h ands o f a careful man, is liable to do a lot of damage . Everything below the b ench should be open, a nd a well-made box for empty bottles kept where it can be conveniently reached. The floor should be kept clean and drained, a nd covered wit h sla t work. The run behind the average ba r is usually unclean and damp, and there is no excuse for such a condition o f affairs, which is caused by either poor d rainage or careless– ness on the p art of the bar-te nd er. If the space behind the under part of the bar is dark it should be lighted ar t ificially, a n d the ex tra expense will be more tha n made up by the saving resulting from less breakages. The bench facing sh ould be of corrugated meta l with a p itch sufficient to make drainage an easy matter. Don 't forget to h ave the receptacle for powdered sugar and your fruits, etc., in a place that will be con venient to reach as well as dry. \¥ h en mixing, the wisest plan for the nov ice is lo pour. ingredients in t he shaker first and afterwards add the ice, as t hen a mistake can easily be rectified. Great care should be taken to a void using snowy ice, which dissolves too quickly a nd gives the beverage a watery flavour. H ow to hold your shaker, and strain, is bette r explained b y the photo on cover and frontispiece. As to s tirring a cocktail this is clone in a large bar glass (pint size) b y stir– ring briskly with a long bar spoon. This practice was not in much use in New York j us t before America went dry, in fact the only time it is neces– sary to s tir a cocktail is when you arc mixin g drinks containing an effervescent liquid