What The Heck Is A Jigger & Pony?
Jigger & Pony: Maybe it’s the name of the pub you were at last night but got too drunk to remember - but more than likely it’s something of an old fashioned measuring device that looks like 2 different sized metal shot glasses with the bottoms sauldered together.
Jigger and Ponys are used to measure ingredients when mixing drinks. The larger capacity side is called the “Jigger” and the smaller capacity side is called the “Pony”. Sometimes these are called a double-ended jigger - but that sounds more like an overweight Irish dancer to me.
While they come in different sizes, the most useful Jigger and Pony is probably the 3/4 oz x 1 oz size. That combination allows you to quickly measure not only 3/4 oz and 1 oz, but 1-1/2 oz (which is two 3/4 oz shots) and 2 oz (two 1 oz shots).
You’ll need to be careful where you purchase this particular bar tool, I once bought one from a grocery store and couldn’t figure out what measurement they were using, but it sure wasn’t 3/4 oz or 1 oz or 1-1/2 oz. While completely and utterly biased, it’s hard to beat the Jigger & Ponys in the HomeBarSupplys.com store.
A substitute for a Jigger & Pony is a measuring shot glass that has the measurements etched into the glass, the nice thing with these is you know exactly where to stop pouring, they also have smaller measurements marked on the glass, going down to .5 ounces. I had four of these originally that now have no markings on them because they’ve been washed so much! You can find the precise measuring shot glasses here.