# Why is it called a "pot" of beer



## GMCbris (25/8/17)

Hi all

Trying to find out why us Qlders call a middy a pot

Anyone know the origin?

Cheers 

G


----------



## Bribie G (25/8/17)

It's also a pot in Victoria. So I take it you are in NSW.
There are heaps of regional differences around Australia with ponies and other weird stuff in the Southern States.

For example Schooners were not available in Queensland and Victoria until only around 20 years ago and in some states our schooner is called a pint, which is a total ripoff obviously.

In NSW a longneck (750ml bottle) is called a Tallie in QLD.

I live in Kyogle NSW that is a bit of a QLD colony just South of the border and they will happily sell you a Tallie and serve you a pot but will also sell you a longneck and a middy. Confusing. Also silver beet is labelled silver beet in the supermarket. Go further south and it's spinach.
Not that silver beet is true spinach but that's the cockroaches for you as the QLDrs would say


----------



## mstrelan (25/8/17)

It's all too confusing, I just ask for a small or large these days.


----------



## manticle (25/8/17)

Similar but I just ask for a large.

Would be ok if at least it was consistent within each state but now some places do schooners as the largest, some do pints.

I wanna ******* pint.

Of Rochefort 10.


----------



## Lionman (25/8/17)

I think it might have originated to mean a glass with out a handle and has just morphed into meaning a certain size glass, but I might be misinterpreting this.



> At the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939, beer in New South Wales was retailed in glasses of three different sizes: 20 ounces (pint), 13 ounces (369ml) , and 9 ounces (255ml). There was also a schooner glass, but this seems then to have been a pint measure, differing from a normal pint ‘pot’ by its lack of a handle.



https://www.brewsnews.com.au/2011/01/schooner-wars/


----------



## Ducatiboy stu (25/8/17)

Its a F^%^&%^ Middy.....Period


----------



## manticle (25/8/17)

Pot is easier to say when you're hammered.

I will have a pot of beer please, my sweet barkeep and a packet of arse bandits as well.


----------



## manticle (25/8/17)




----------



## Mardoo (25/8/17)

I've a bit of an American accent remaining, even after 20 years here. Every bugging time I say pot, they pour a pint, and for the life of me I can't figure out how to change my pronunciation to get the right thing.

Where the hell did schooner come from? It looks nothing like a boat.


----------



## Tropico (25/8/17)

Just ask the bar-person for a stubby, saves all the confusion and misunderstanding


----------



## unwrittenlaw (25/8/17)

A pot is a pot and a middy is a mid strength


----------



## yurgy (25/8/17)

middy or pot still falls out me hand.


----------



## Brewno Marz (25/8/17)

yurgy said:


> middy or pot still falls out me hand.


You need to go to NT...it's a handle...

Then there's the "schmiddy" where pubs serve you something a wee bit bigger than a middy (pot/half/handle/SA schooner) and charge the same price as a schooner (SA pint).

There's also bars getting cute and selling "pints" at about 470ml - what the? Apparently it's a US pint - just a bit bigger than a schooner.


----------



## Jack of all biers (25/8/17)

yurgy said:


> middy or pot still falls out me hand.



What about a butcher. Sneeze and it's empty.


----------



## malt junkie (25/8/17)

hey no where near as bad as south OZ, was doing another coast to coast in a flash (3 days with the kids) type run to Perth from Sydney. Bloody hot long run to Port Augusta, pull in to what seemed to be a good spot for lunch and a beer. Order a pint of what ever was cold, was handed a 425ml glass of beer, now lets be straight here $12 (6 years ago). I almost got on to weights and measures on the phone, freaking bloody joke!!


----------



## Batz (25/8/17)

Jack of all biers said:


> What about a butcher. Sneeze and it's empty.



Butcher comes from the glass shape, butchers had fat on their hands and dropped straight sided glasses. Well that's what I was told once..no soap in SA?
Pony is smaller than a butcher too.


----------



## good4whatAlesU (26/8/17)

Bit of a long shot, but is it possible that very early on - glazed clay pots (cups) were used to serve beer in addition to glasses? Bendigo ginger beer was sold in glazed clay bottles.
More likely though as said above by Lionman, just derived from a glass without a handle.


----------



## wide eyed and legless (26/8/17)

Reminds me of a mate of mine, only been in Melbourne a few weeks and we went to Sydney and he asked for a pot of VB the barman told him he only had schooners so he said well just give me a pot of schooners.


----------



## Nullnvoid (26/8/17)

Me: Can I have a <insert tasty beer name >
Bartender: What size?
Me: Biggest glass you have please.


----------



## mstrelan (26/8/17)

In Canada, or at least BC, you can order a pint or a sleeve. A pint could be either Imperial 20 oz (568mL) or US 16 oz (473mL). Not sure about a sleeve but it's smaller than a pint. Who knows what you're getting?


----------



## bungers81 (26/8/17)

A quick guide


----------



## manticle (26/8/17)

Must be an old guide. Schooners abound down here.


----------



## Black Devil Dog (26/8/17)

I'm sure there are/were 7oz beers in Qld. I did a bit of bar work in the late 80's and IIRC 7's were available. Pots were the preferred size 99% of the time though.


----------



## Brewnicorn (26/8/17)

Black Devil Dog said:


> I'm sure there are/were 7oz beers in Qld. I did a bit of bar work in the late 80's and IIRC 7's were available. Pots were the preferred size 99% of the time though.



Definitely are. And pints too. Table is a bit of a 5oz Fosters Light in the accuracy dept...


----------



## BrockHops (26/8/17)

At least we can all agree that a Jug is a Jug.
I'll have a jug please.


----------



## mstrelan (27/8/17)

BrockHops said:


> At least we can all agree that a Jug is a Jug.
> I'll have a jug please.


You mean a pitcher?


----------



## BrockHops (27/8/17)

mstrelan said:


> You mean a pitcher?


No, that's what you hang on the wall.


----------



## yurgy (27/8/17)

baseball?


----------



## Lionman (28/8/17)

Mardoo said:


> I've a bit of an American accent remaining, even after 20 years here. Every bugging time I say pot, they pour a pint, and for the life of me I can't figure out how to change my pronunciation to get the right thing.
> 
> Where the hell did schooner come from? It looks nothing like a boat.



The link I posted above claims it comes from a legal dispute over pubs trying to sell smaller vessels as 'pints'. A Schooner is a smaller ship with only 2 masts, compared to a full-rigged ship with 3 masts.

Basically its a metaphor from a time when ships where relevant.


----------



## Phoney (28/8/17)

115ml?

That's like a Mexican shotglass, that they fill with tequila.


----------



## wereprawn (28/8/17)

I can't say I know much about where the term "pot" comes from, but I do know the different beer glass terminology in QLD v NSW can be potentially dangerous. 

25 odd years ago I walked into the Halekulani Bowls Club and asked how much it was for a pot. The young "man mountain" behind the bar leans across, puts his face to mine and quietly growls " What the **** did you just say to me? Get out or I'm gonna come over there, drag you out and belt shit out of ya." Needless to say I was shocked at the big fella's poor attitude but luckily realized where the confusion lay. As soon as i said I was from QLD the tension went from his face. By the time I went on to tell him I only wanted a glass of beer and not a bag of weed he was all laughs and smiles. 

He shouted me a couple of SCHOONERS and was the perfect host for the rest of the afternoon. Phew.


----------



## Rocker1986 (28/8/17)

N/A to pints in QLD? Must be old, they're everywhere at least in Brisbane.


----------



## manticle (28/8/17)

Under Joh, anything over a teaspoon consumed after 3pm or before 1 in the afternoon incurred a $500 fine, disposession of your house and kids and a phone book spine across the upper teeth.


----------



## Brewnicorn (28/8/17)

manticle said:


> Under Joh, anything over a teaspoon consumed after 3pm or before 1 in the afternoon incurred a $500 fine, disposession of your house and kids and a phone book spine across the upper teeth.



And if you did it in company the riot squad would have you.


----------



## Cerveja (29/8/17)

Reminds me of about 30 years ago working the clubs in Tweed. Every QLDer that came in would simply ask for a pot. We gave up asking for a pot of what (usually at least 6 beers on tap) and would just pour our fancy. Even saw a pot of water go across the bar once.


----------



## Cerveja (29/8/17)

And then on Saturday was on day release at the local RSL and sauntered to the bar and asked for a schooner of Stella. Barman said I can only do a pot or pint. I said I want a schooner though. He told me there's hardly any difference between a schooner and a pint. I thought my first beer must've been laced with something as I simply didn't get what he was saying. He then proceeded to the fridge and pulled out 2 fancy Stella glasses and asked again pot or pint? I laughed and went for the pint. He poured it then whipped out a Stella branded knife to knock the creamy head off. Then told me he'd only charge me for a schooner. I didn't have the heart to tell him it's BUL so gave him another laugh and disappeared into the masses.


----------



## Pnutapper (30/8/17)

Cerveja said:


> He poured it then whipped out a Stella branded knife to knock the creamy head off. Then told me he'd only charge me for a schooner. I didn't have the heart to tell him it's BUL so gave him another laugh and disappeared into the masses.



This whole theater thing with the water sprayed into the glass and the spatula cutting the head off with Stella really sh!ts me.

First part of the process waters down the beer (Admittedly, not much - but still...) and the second is a waste of beer. I refuse to install driptray water sprayers when the brewery specifies them. /rant over

In Victoria a few years ago, there was a push for the Schmiddy (330mL I think.) As if the corner publican does not already have enough glassware to try to find space for. Needless to say - that concept was a flash in the pan that didn't last long.

A few venues around the country are now offering DIY pouring. The beer is metered and charged out by the mL on consumption. Venue staff need to reactivate the system after a predetermined amount has been poured for RSA purposes. Customers can pour as much or as little as they want into their glass each time.


----------



## Phoney (30/8/17)

Pnutapper said:


> A few venues around the country are now offering DIY pouring. Customers can pour as much or as little as they want into their glass each time.n.



But can they do laybacks?


----------



## Pnutapper (30/8/17)

Phoney said:


> But can they do laybacks?



I believe so... As long as nobody sees it.


----------



## Schikitar (30/8/17)

Down here in Tas we often call a "pot" either just that OR more commonly a "ten ounce" - as that's truer to its origins than whatever you Canadians call it. Other than that we have pints but oddly we don't call those a "twenty ounce" (logic fail). Things got weird when craft pubs started popping up, my local, for example, refers to them as "small" (pot/10oz) or a "large" (schooner) - no pints, I'm sure they make a better margin (and I don't get as drunk)! Nearly all other places only do tens and pints though. There are names for our six and eight ounce beers but I can't recall because, lets be honest, who would waste their time with them!


----------



## Lionman (30/8/17)

The craft beer bar in Perth sells three sizes small, medium and large, 150, 300, and 450ml respectively.

I like this in a craft beer place with a lot of beers on tap. You can sample some of the more obscure beer styles without committing to a larger glass.


----------



## bradsbrew (30/8/17)

manticle said:


> Under Joh, anything over a teaspoon consumed after 3pm or before 1 in the afternoon incurred a $500 fine, disposession of your house and kids and a phone book spine across the upper teeth.


And then the Dean Bros would come in and demolish the heritage listed building you consumed in.


----------



## earle (30/8/17)

bradsbrew said:


> And then the Dean Bros would come in and demolish the heritage listed building you consumed in.



Don't you worry about that!


----------



## Bribie G (30/8/17)

Black Devil Dog said:


> I'm sure there are/were 7oz beers in Qld. I did a bit of bar work in the late 80's and IIRC 7's were available. Pots were the preferred size 99% of the time though.


In the 1970s Brisbane had 8 ounce beers and the country areas had 7 ounce beers. When I lived in Bundy and Mbro in the 70s and early 80s they were just called sevens and tens. 

The name "Pots" came in around the late 80s IIRC.


----------



## Danscraftbeer (30/8/17)

Pnutapper said:


> A few venues around the country are now offering DIY pouring. The beer is metered and charged out by the mL on consumption. Venue staff need to reactivate the system after a predetermined amount has been poured for RSA purposes. Customers can pour as much or as little as they want into their glass each time.



That would be interesting, or messy considering most people cant pour a glass of beer!
"owww why do I always get a glass of froth?"  then blame the beer and refuse to pay for it etc.


----------



## Lyrebird_Cycles (30/8/17)

Back to the original question: I wonder if calling a medium sized glass of beer a pot is a back formation from _tosspot _meaning drunkard, which has been around since the 16th century at least.


----------



## Danscraftbeer (30/8/17)

Piss Pot. There it is. Makes sense.


----------



## good4whatAlesU (30/8/17)

good4whatAlesU said:


> Bit of a long shot, but is it possible that very early on - glazed clay pots (cups) were used to serve beer in addition to glasses? .


A drunkard who tosses back lots of 'pots'


----------



## Feldon (8/9/17)

Pot has been in use as word for a drink and food vessel in England probably since the 5th or 6th century, probably brought over by the Saxons who arrived from continental Europe about this time.

"Word origin of 'pot'
Late Old English _pott_, from Medieval Latin _pottus _(unattested), perhaps from Latin _pōtus _a drink; compare Middle Low German _pot_, Old Norse _pottr"_
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/pot

As for differing sizes of pint glasses etc in various states, there's this story out today on the ABC website (from a South Australian perspective)

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-08/curious-adelaide-south-australia-beer-glass-sizes/8874960


----------

