The finger is a mostly abandoned and imprecise (but pretty cool) measurement system, dating back to the saloons of the Wild West. A patron’s pour size, typically a pour of whiskey based on the bartender’s fingers with each finger referring to the amount that would fill a glass to the level of the specified number of fingers wrapped around the glass at the bottom.
With renewed interest in Prohibition-era drinking culture, some bars are working to formalize the measurement stating that one finger is a 3/4″ deep pour in standard rocks glasses. Since this translates closely to a fluid ounce of volume, one finger would be an ounce, two would be two ounces, and so on.
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