The classic cocktail uses a “2-1-1” ratio: two parts alcohol, one part sour and one part other flavorants.

But Ed, you ask, that’s all very nice but I want to make a gallon of punch so how do I know how much of each liquid to meet those ratios?

Well, it is based on how much you want to make. You can make a drink as small as a shot glass or as big as a a bathtub using the nomenclature I provide.

A ‘part’ is not referring to a specific amount such as an ounce or centiliter etc. 

It refers to the volume of the liquid in reference to all the other ingredients. Utilizing this method you can mix anything from a shooter to a bathtub punch with ease and the proportions will remain consistent. 

So for example, if you are using a pint glass—which in your system of measurement might be 16 ounces or 473 mL— simply determine the total ‘parts’ that comprise your drink and decide what each part represents volume-wise to allow it all to fit in the glass. Using our example, if the recipe calls for four ingredients of one part each, each part would be 4 ounces or approximately 118 mL to fill the glass.

For solid measures, I default to the American terms of teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp). For those using metric measurements, a teaspoon is approx. 4.7 gm and is one-third of a tablespoon at 14.3 gm.

So, to reiterate, a ‘part’ is any measure of the ingredient. It can be 1 ounce, 1 centiliter, 1 quart, 1 liter, 1 gallon, or 1 eyedropper.

For example lets consider how to make a screwdriver which consists of 1 part vodka and 3 parts orange juice.

For a single drink I might pour 1 ounce of vodka to which I add 3 ounces of orange juice.

Making a punch bowl? 1 gallon of vodka to 3 gallons of orange juice.

Get the picture?

That should give you enough data to begin reading the rest of the site and know what I’m talking about. Again, if you want more in-depth details on the science of tasting, buy my book.