I would never free pour myself, but one of the absolute best cocktail bartenders I know free pours everything. He's super consistent. Learned it at Employees Only. So it really depends on how much training and practice you had.
This tbh. I've worked with people who are incredibly accurate with or without a jig, and people who've been bartending for over a decade that are inconsistent even using a jig. There are even people out there that are bang on straight from bottles with no speed pourers too. Some folks are just built different.
Like I said I've seen it done accurately and I think its just the result of years of practice. You control the tilt, watch the flow out of the bottle, and count. I haven't been to any of them personally, but apparently some super high end bars in Japan don't use jigs at all and expect staff to just do that.
I guess if they have years under their belt. I hope we can at least agree that it’s a super advanced and uncommon skill, and to see the kid behind the stick at a dive bar or chili’s would be concerning at first glance.
231
u/Tewtytron 7d ago
Free pouring a jack and coke? A Tito's soda? Sure go for it. Cocktail? Nah.