Short beer

A short beer was a serving size of beer once common in New York City, being a reduced portion of beer for a reduced price. Writer David McAninch reflected on the past tradition for The New York Times:

{{quote|This wonderful drink, which can still be had for 50 cents at places like Kelly's Tavern in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, is a dignified holdover from an age before the mighty pint became the irreducible unit of consumption. The short beer is a mere half-mug, served more often than not in a small stemmed glass, and it remains the order of choice for scores of seasoned old drinkers who like to know they can still buy a round for the house once in a while. Behind the portal of many an unfashionable old bar awaits the not inconsequential delight of being able to enjoy a night of drinking in New York without using up a $10 bill.{{cite book|author=Constance Rosenblum|title=More New York Stories: The Best of the City Section of The New York Times|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fqwUCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA80|date=24 November 2010|publisher=NYU Press|isbn=978-0-8147-7655-1|pages=80–}}}}

Short beer, in Britain (also known as small beer), was used to describe a beer brewed for a short period of time to kill off bugs in it so making it safe to drink, as the water was often unhealthy.