There are 77 official drinks in the bartender catalog and many of them require the use of specific cocktail glasses. This is the reason why it is essential to learn all about the types of glasses available for events.
There are a total of 9 types of glasses for drinks in bartending. You will find that there are many exotic and extravagant variations out there, but they use all of the official nine in many popular cocktails.
We are going to mention each of these nine glasses and how they provide optimal shapes for specific drinks. Once you have this information, you will have more knowledge of the bartending world and how it works.
What are the popular types of cocktail glasses available?
The following is a list of the nine types of cocktail glasses used in bartending. We did not place them in any particular order. They are all just as relevant and they should be on any bartending item list for outstanding service.
All of these glasses are usually made of standard glass, with the exception of one made with copper. Their design caters to certain drinks with and without ice. If you have yet to try all of them, it is a good idea to learn about which drinks work properly with each shape.
The Zombie Glass
This is the tallest and narrowest of all glasses available for cocktails. A very large capacity and visually appealing glass that has a smooth shape it. You will find that there are many people who fall in love with this glass because of how much drink it can hold.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Zombie
- Tequila Sunrise
- Fuzzy Navel
The Highball Glass
This is also a pretty tall and slim glass but not quite as tall as the Zombie. This is an excellent glass that is ideal to keep drinks cold when served on the rocks. Many people find this to be the most popular standard cocktail drink, but it should only be used for a few options.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Gin and Tonic
- Dark and Stormy
- Rum and Coke
The Rocks Glass
This is one of the shortest, but also the widest cocktail glasses. It also gets its name from the fact that it is ideal for some cold drinks on the rocks served with one or two large cubes of ice.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Sazerac
- Negroni
- Old Fashioned
The Collins Glass
This is often mistaken for the Highball glass, but the Collins glass is taller and narrower with a capacity that is slightly larger than the Highball. It is great for the purpose of keeping cocktails cold when served on the rocks and it is quite known due to the number of drinks made on this glass.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Tom Collins
- Mojito
- Paloma
The Martini Glass
If you have seen any type of bartending movie, show, or live bartending event, you have seen this glass without a doubt. It is probably the most iconic glass that you will find on this list. The shape of the glass is ideal for sipping and not for fast drinking. The popularity of the glass and the drinks made for it can be undeniable.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Martini
- Sidecar
- Cosmopolitan
The Coupe Glass
This is a rounded version of the Martini glass and it is meant for servings with no ice. The large surface calls for sipping just as it does for the latter. This is definitely a more popular option for certain drinks that are no carbonated. The Manhattan is amongst the most popular drinks that use this glass shape.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Boulevardier
- Manhattan
- Gimlet
The margarita Glass
While the martini glass has the most iconic of all cocktail glasses look, perhaps it is the margarita drink that has the most popular name. The glass itself is quite large and in a shape that offers both a very wide section and a narrow bottom. This glass is just perfect for the margarita.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Margarita on the Rocks
- Frozen margarita
- Daiquiri
The Hurricane Glass
This glass is shaped in quite an original way with a wide bottom, wide top, and narrowing mid-section. This glass is perfect for many tropical cocktails loved by people who prefer fruity cocktails to anything else. The Pina Colada is a particularly popular drink in many events. This is often the case in open events during the day.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Hurricane
- Pina Colada
- Singapore Sling
The Copper Mug
We saved the most uncommon and strikingly different for last. The Copper Mug is exactly what you think it is, a copper mug. It is said that copper has the power to enhance the flavors of citrus and ginger beer as well as the lime juice that is added to popular drinks.
Popular drinks served in this glass include:
- Greyhound
- Moscow Mule
- Mint Julep
Note: There are endless variations of all of these glasses in terms of their texture and slight enhancements or changes in shape. The ones we mentioned and show are all the base styles of each one. You will also find other styles like glasses shaped in the form of boots or animals.
How often do you find these cocktail glasses at events and bars?
There is practically no night with a full bar that won’t be using all nine glasses at least a few times each. If you had to choose one glass that is the least common, it would have to be copper glass, but this is no longer the case due to how popular the Moscow Mule and the Greyhound have become.
It is essential for all bars to have all of these glasses available for any type of event. You may find that some small mobile bars will probably have fewer tall and narrow options, but this is uncommon. Each glass has a purpose and the amount of content they hold is also important.
All of the popular drinks in the official IBA catalog can be mixed and served with these glasses. This means that any bartender that has those particular glass shapes can run an entire event without worries. They are all essential for the bar to be stacked not only with ingredients but also with proper glasses.
How hard is it for a bartender to learn to mix cocktails?
Learning to mix cocktails properly is something that takes practice. It is important to keep in mind that there are 77 drinks in total. They all have their own set of ingredients and also an order and amount per drink.
This means that it is very important to learn the details for them and how to serve each one properly. Some bartenders learn mixology in order to become efficient at bartending, but others simply learn by trial and error and experience.
There is no specific way to learn this and every person has their own style and pace. The learning curve for bartending is not particularly steep, but it can be difficult if you don’t practice.
A large number of bar owners and event planners expect the bartenders to have the experience needed to handle all 77 cocktails with ease. With that said, there are others who do not feel this way and find this to be unnecessary. The truth is that a bartender needs to prepare for that situation even if it doesn’t happen often.
The last thing any bartender wants is to decline jobs because their skills don’t meet the needs of the client. The readiness of the bartender is one thing that is always going to be essential for success.
What does it take to become an amazing bartender?
Being a bartender that stands out from the rest of the competition is not easy. You need to display much more than drink knowledge. You also need to have a great level of emotional control. It is also good to be friendly, outgoing, and extremely reliable. The ability to use all cocktail glasses also helps tremendously.
You also have to be someone who is always on time and dresses the part. It also pays to be sober and avoid alcoholic drinking. When someone is a bartender, they should stay away from alcoholic beverages as this is a slippery slope for anyone in this line of work.
The other thing that bartenders need is to be highly motivated and this is going to be very helpful when starting their own business. The bartending world can be quite amazing and many people succeed as independent bartenders. This is why it is important to find joy in this profession.
It is very common for people with good social skills to be great at bartending. You are going to find that this is a powerful way to make guests feel special and this is a great quality in bartending. When guests feel that the bartender is friendly and helpful, the event planners are likely to recommend their services to others.
Are there other great ways to enhance events other than good bartending?
Yes, you can find that a great DJ or a Photo Booth can have an amazing effect on any event. There are literally hundreds of reasons why an event can fail, but very few factors that can really make an event shine.
When you hire a photo booth service, you can turn any event into a much more fun situation. The same thing happens if you hire a flair bartender that can serve drinks and perform tricks at the same time.
These are excellent ways for any event enhancement and they can be a very powerful way to handle things. Just keep in mind that the biggest concern for an event planner is to ensure that everyone is entertained and no one is bored.
Party Shakers is ready to make the best drinks for your event
We are a team of highly skilled bartenders that know how to mix and serve all the drinks in the catalog. This means that you can expect us to be quite familiar with every single one of the glasses mentioned earlier in this post.
Our experience allows us to be professional and ready to help with any kind of event that requires our services. We have been in business for a long time and every bartender on our team understands the value of proper service and high quality.
Just let us know what kind of work you need to be done and we will be more than happy to serve your guests. We provide bartending services, food catering DJs, and Photo Booths for any event.
Questions and answers for cocktail glasses
The nine glasses are the Zombie Glass, the Highball Glass, the Rocks Glass, the Collins Glass, the Martini Glass, the Coupe Glass, the margarita Glass, the Hurricane Glass, and the Copper Mug. These are all used for several different drinks and that is why they are optimal.
These glasses are all used in almost daily bars and events. It is very rare to see no requests for those drinks at least a few times. That is the main reason why all of the glasses mentioned on this list need to be available at any bar. The best bartenders in the world know that having these shapes of glasses is crucial.
Mixing cocktails takes practice and that is the main thing that people need to consider when bartending. A good bartending usually know all the drinks by heart and will have no problem serving a cocktail without looking for the steps to make it. If there is one thing that looks unprofessional is when a professional bartender is looking at a smartphone to learn or remember how to mix a drink.
The right attitude, motivation, love for the profession, and people skills are all going to play a very important role in this process. Always keep those factors in mind and you will achieve the best results in your bartending career.
Are there other great ways to enhance events other than good bartending?
You can really enhance the fun factor at any event by adding a photo booth. You can also hire a flair bartender to ensure an even more engaging time at the bar. Keep those things in mind at all times and the results will be amazing even when an event seems ordinary. Adding those elements will help turn it into something extraordinary.
Final thoughts
One of the most relevant aspects of bartending is the process of serving drinks fast and properly. This can be very daunting for someone who has never served a drink before, but practice always makes perfect.
If you want to hire an amazing bartending team that knows how to handle every one of those cocktail glasses, Party Shakers is the ultimate option for your needs. Send us a message and we will be happy to assist!
