The Simple Tool That Makes Cocktails More Precise

It sometimes seems like much of cocktail culture is intended to make drinks more complex, obscure, and mysterious. There are ingredients like Chartreuse, for example, which is a French herbal liqueur that contains 130 different ingredients, the recipe for which is a closely guarded secret. Our goal is to make cocktails approachable, providing recipes and techniques anyone can master, like our list of 11 must-try cocktails.

Then there are the tools: shot glasses of various sizes, muddlers, jiggers, shakers, strainers, and glasses in a wide assortment of shapes, each designed to suit a different drink. You have to know which cocktails should be shaken and which stirred. You may struggle with deciding which drinks need egg whites for the perfect foam and trying to figure out how to master the layered cocktail. If only there were a perfect tool that helps aspiring mixologists measure each ingredient with absolute precision. Now there is!

The Kitchn recently published a review of the perfect cocktail tool: It's the mini angled measuring cup made by Oxo. Great bartenders measure their ingredients, even if it doesn't always look like it. Provi explains that a good bartender can free pour a measured amount of an ingredient simply because they're experienced. Most people making cocktails at home need to measure, though, and this little measuring cup is the tool you need.

The mini angled measuring cup holds a mere two ounces, but don't let its small size deter you. It has markings for ounces, tablespoons, cups, and milliliters, which means you don't have to do any tricky conversions on the fly. The precision pour spout makes it easy to transfer liquids without spilling, and the cup's even dishwasher safe. Whether you're trying out one of our wine cocktails or working on mastering one of our recommendations for cocktails made with gin, this little measuring cup is a mighty mixology tool.