{{Short description|Very tall beer glass}} {{About|the measurement of beer known as the ''yard''|other definitions|Yard (disambiguation)}} [[File:yardOfAle.jpg|thumb|A yard of ale]] A '''yard of ale''' or '''yard glass''' is a tall [[beer glass]] used for drinking around {{Convert|2+1/2|imppt|L}} of beer, depending upon the diameter.
The glass is approximately {{convert|1|yd|cm|sigfig=1|abbr=off|spell=in}} long, shaped with a bulb at the bottom, and a widening shaft, which constitutes most of the height.<ref>{{Cite book | last=Rabin | first=Dan |author2=Carl Forge |title=The Dictionary of Beer and Brewing | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XRyxWu8rRnQC&q=%22yard+of+ale%22+coach&pg=PA283| location=Chicago | publisher=Fitzroy Dearborn | year=1998 | isbn=9781579580780 | access-date=2010-03-10}}</ref>
The glass most likely originated in 17th-century [[England]], where it was known also as a "long glass", a "Cambridge yard (glass)" and an "[[ell]] glass". It is associated by legend with stagecoach drivers, though it was mainly used for drinking feats and special toasts.<ref name=Brit>{{Cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/652036/yard-of-ale-glass|title=Yard-of-ale glass (drinking glass) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia|publisher=britannica.com|access-date=2010-03-10}}</ref><ref name=Yard>{{Cite web|url=http://www.theyardofale.com/index.php/history/|title=The Yard of Ale : Our History|publisher=theyardofale.com|access-date=2010-03-10|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100304113941/http://www.theyardofale.com/index.php/history/|archive-date=2010-03-04}}</ref>
Drinking a yard glass full of beer as quickly as possible is a traditional [[pub game]]; as with the toe of a [[beer boot]], the bulb at the bottom of the glass makes it possible for the contestant to be splashed with a sudden rush of beer toward the end of the feat. The fastest drinking of a yard of ale in the ''[[Guinness Book of Records]]'' is 5 seconds.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=jaoxAQAAIAAJ&q=%22Yard+of+ale%22+guinness+record |title=The Guinness book of records 1999|page=60|publisher=Guinness|year= 1998 |isbn=9780851120706|access-date=28 June 2011}}</ref>
==Description== The glass is approximately {{convert|1|yd|in cm}}, shaped with a bulb at the bottom and a widening shaft, which constitutes most of the height. In countries where the metric system is used, the glass may be {{convert|1|m|yd in}}. Because the glass is so long and in any case does not usually have a stable flat base, it is hung on the wall when not in use.
==History== [[File:Yard of Ale name sign, Stratford-upon-Avon (geograph 4139995).jpg|thumb|The Yard of Ale pub, [[Stratford-upon-Avon]]]] The glass most likely originated in 17th-century England, where the glass was known also as a "long glass", a "Cambridge yard (glass)" and an "[[ell]] glass".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.suffolkglass.co.uk/cgi-bin/sitewise.pl?act=sect&pt=61&s=95&id=glass |title=Suffolk Glass |publisher=suffolkglass.co.uk |access-date=2009-09-26 |archive-date=2016-12-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220080652/http://www.suffolkglass.co.uk/cgi-bin/sitewise.pl?act=sect&pt=61&s=95&id=glass |url-status=dead }}</ref> Such a glass was a testament to the [[glassblowing|glassblower]]'s skill as much as the drinker's. [[John Evelyn]] records in his ''[[John Evelyn's Diary|Diary]]'' the formal yet festive drinking of a yard of ale toast to [[James II of England|James II]] at Bromley in Kent (now southeast London), in 1685.
Yard glasses can be found hanging on the walls of some English pubs, and there are a number of pubs named ''The Yard of Ale'' throughout the country.
==Usage== Drinking a yard glass full of beer is a traditional [[pub game]] in the UK. Some ancient colleges at Oxford University have [[sconcing]] forfeits.<ref>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=e_Kw0KWTgmQC&pg=PA205 |title=A frieze of girls: memoirs as fiction |page=201|author=Allan Seager|publisher=University of Michigan Press|year= 2004 |isbn=0472089579 |access-date=28 June 2011}}</ref> While it is popularly said that former Australian Prime Minister [[Bob Hawke]] was previously the world record holder for the fastest drinking of a yard of beer, Hawke did not set a world beer drinking record. The record he set was a minor record for students of University College, while much faster records were set elsewhere by other people.<ref>[[C. J. Coventry]], Sedimentary Layers: [https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14443058.2023.2215790 Bob Hawke's Beer World Record And Ocker Chic], Journal of Australian Studies, 2023.</ref>
In [[New Zealand]], where it is referred to as a "yardie", drinking a yard glass full of beer is traditionally performed at a 21st birthday by the celebrated person.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/38850/turning-21-doing-a-yardie|title=Turning 21: doing a yardie – Birthdays and wedding anniversaries – Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand|work=teara.govt.nz}}</ref>
==See also== {{portal|Beer|Drink}} *[[Beer tower]] *[[Drinking horn]] {{-}}
==References== {{reflist|30em}}
{{Glassware}} {{Alcohol and health}}
[[Category:Drinking glasses]] [[Category:Beer glassware]] [[Category:Alcohol measurement]]
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