When is a pint not a pint?
New Zealand doesn't use a pint as a measure.
A pint is an imperial form of measurement still used in some countries. But in New Zealand it just means a large glass or handle of beer.
If you ask for a pint you probably won’t get exactly 568ml, for two reasons.
- We don’t use imperial measurements in New Zealand. It is actually illegal to use imperial measurements for trade.
- Most drinks are served by a range of varying glass sizes. The term pint is just used to describe a particular type or glass size (usually large glass or handle).
There is no requirement to sell beer, wine or spirits by measure, however where bars do state the volume, it must be metric and the customers must receive the volume as advertised.This usually means that the bars will have to have verified standard measure glasses.
If you want to know how big the serve is before you order, just ask the bartender to show you the glass or handle, or for wine, ask where they fill the glass up to.
