Shandygaff
3.3 11 ratings
Ingredients
How to make
Serve in a pint glass
Prepare
- 1 Select a PINT GLASS.
- 2 No garnish to prepare.
Method
- 3 POUR beer into chilled glass.
- 4 TOP with ginger ale.
Garnish
- 5 Serve naked, without garnish.
History
Tastier than the average 'lager shandy'.
This drink and its name originated in England and date back to at least the late 19th century. The name derives from London slang for a pint of beer: 'shant of gatter' (shanty meaning a public house, gatter meaning water). The ginger ale acts as a flavorful way to dilute the beer's strength, hence the literal translation, 'pub water'. H. G. Wells, in the first chapter of The History of Mr. Polly, describes a shandygaff as being, "two pints of beer and two bottles of ginger beer foaming in a huge round-bellied jug." In London, beer is now usually diluted with lemonade, and this drink is now simply called a shandy. When ordering in a pub, one is expected to ask for 'lager shandy' or 'bitter shandy,' the latter specifying that the drink should be based on traditional real ale. The term 'Shandygaff' is largely forgotten in London today, but it remains popular in the Caribbean, where this drink is typically prepared with beer and ginger ale or ginger beer.
Also known as Sandygaff