A pony glass may mean one of two types of small glassware:
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A quarter-pint glass of beer: , metricated to 140ml in Australia.
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A small, stemmed glass of about one ounce,
[ CocktailDB] similar to a stemmed shot glass. Used for or cordials,[ Mr. Boston Bartender's Guide, Mr. Boston Distiller Corporation, Boston, 1978, back endpapers] hence also called a "cordial glass" or "liqueur glass".
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A bar measure that is half of a jigger, used to measure a cordial. A pony traditionally held , and is attached to the bottom of a jigger measure, which held . In modern times, however, both the size and ratio of the jigger to pony varies widely.
Name
The name "" is due to the small size, and dates to the 19th century.
[ Notes and Queries, August 8th, 1896, p. 126: “It seems probable the origin is due to the diminutiveness of the glass;”]
“The expression ‘a pony of beer’ is often used in South Wales for a small glass containing about the fourth of a pint.” Similar terms include pony bottle and
pony keg.
History
The pony as a measure reached its apex around the end of the 19th century, which also happened to be a golden age of barware.
