What is a dram?

A dram has no fixed volume; in the Netherlands it usually means 2 to 3 cl of whisky per glass.

The word comes from Scotland, where a dram simply means a glass of whisky. No measuring cup goes with it. Whoever pours at home decides how much goes in the glass.

That makes the calculation awkward, because the difference between 2 and 3 cl is half as much alcohol again. So measure once how much your usual pour yields.

In the United Kingdom spirits must be sold by the glass in measures of 25 or 35 millilitres, or a multiple thereof.

That obligation is laid down in the Weights and Measures (Intoxicating Liquor) Order 1988, in which the 1994 amendment placed the 35 milliliter measure alongside the 25 milliliter one. A hospitality venue chooses one of the two and displays which measure is poured.

The Dutch Alcohol Act regulates who may serve alcohol and to whom, not how much goes into the glass. A dram is therefore a habit here, not a rule.

A dram of 3 cl whisky at 40 percent contains 12 ml of pure alcohol and thus counts as almost one Dutch standard glass.

A standard glass contains about 10 grams of pure alcohol; for spirits that is 35 ml at 35 percent. Alcohol weighs 0.789 grams per millilitre, so those 12 ml come to 9.5 grams.

Convert it to your own glass. A dram of 2 cl at 40 percent gives 8 ml of pure alcohol, about 6.3 grams. A dram of 3 cl at cask strength of 58 percent gives 17.4 ml, about 13.7 grams, almost one and a half standard glasses.

From a 70 cl bottle you can pour 23 drams of 3 cl or 35 drams of 2 cl.

With smaller bottles that drops quickly. A bottle of 50 cl gives 16 drams of 3 cl, a bottle of 35 cl gives 11, and a bottle of 20 cl gives 6.

That little calculation is handy at a tasting. If you want to taste six whiskies with six people at 2 cl per glass, you get almost six such evenings out of every 70 cl bottle.

At a tasting, 2 cl per glass is often poured, so that more whiskies can stand side by side without the amount of alcohol adding up.

Six glasses of 2 cl at 40 percent make 12 cl of whisky in total, good for almost four standard drinks. At 3 cl per glass, that is already almost six standard drinks.

Voor alle duidelijkheid: alcohol schenken aan iemand onder de 18 jaar mag niet, ook niet thuis. Artikel 20 van de Alcoholwet legt die grens vast; NIX18 is daar de bekende naam van.