The Meaning, Origins and Benefits of Call Drinks
Written by Staff Writer
When a customer leans over the bar and says, “I’ll have a seven and seven,” they’ve just called for a drink. Customers who want specific spirits usually ask for them by name. Satisfying these requests will help you meet customer expectations, even during a rush.
In this guide, we will look at major drink classifications, including call, well and top-shelf. By the end, you should have a clear understanding of what general types of spirits bartenders and mixologists work with and why these classifications exist.
What Is a Call Drink?
The term broadly refers to any cocktail for which an ordering customer specifies a particular brand or quality of a spirit. Whether it’s a complex cocktail or a simple whiskey and water, when the customer “calls” the brand of alcohol they want in the drink, they are making a choice for themselves instead of leaving it up to the bartender.
It’s not just about customer choice over bartender choice, either. Unless otherwise requested, bartenders typically default to whatever brand of appropriate spirit the business buys in bulk and keeps in the well. Brands on hand vary widely by establishment.
If a customer prefers a certain brand of spirit or level of quality, calling for it is the best way to ensure they get exactly what they want.
The Three Drink Tiers
Restaurants and bars use a general three-tier system to determine pricing, pour cost and more. They are:
Well
The vast majority of bars carry at least one version of the essential liquors, which include:
- Gin
- Rum
- Tequila
- Vodka
- Brandy
- Whiskey
These liquors are used to craft most popular cocktails people ask for, so every full bar needs some version of each to serve customers. The products in the well (the area behind the bar that holds the main spirits used most often by bartenders) can vary in quality quite a bit depending on the establishment. Without more detail, a whiskey sour will contain any whiskey close at hand in the well.
Call
This is the middle tier of spirits. They are the products customers often request by name for specific cocktails. These beverages are usually more expensive than a well drink, but less expensive than the top-shelf products.
Top-Shelf/Premium
These are the highest-quality spirits the business carries. They are usually reserved for sipping neat (without ice), over ice or in upscale cocktails — often for special occasions. Since different businesses serve different clientele, one bar’s top shelf might be another bar’s call drink.
What’s the Difference Between Call Drinks and Well Drinks?
Restaurants and bars are businesses. The aim is to buy low and sell high, just like any other business. Owners choose their lower-tier options based on a variety of factors, but you can generally expect the well options to be selected from the cheaper, lower-quality choices available on the market.
Sometimes this doesn’t matter too much. Patrons don’t tend to be picky when ordering a vodka and Red Bull. The flavor of the Red Bull is so strong that just about any vodka will do the job. No need to spring for something more expensive when it will be overpowered by additives anyway.
But when ordering a vodka martini, which is almost straight vodka with just a little vermouth, the quality of the liquor matters much more. If the vodka comes from a plastic bottle behind the well, it’s not going to taste great served straight. That’s when it would be appropriate to ask for something of a higher quality. Or, for an indulgent experience, a customer might spring for top-shelf spirits.
What’s the Difference Between Call Drinks and Top-Shelf?
Top-shelf options are the best the establishment has to offer. It’s all relative, so what is top-shelf at a dive bar might be a standard call drink at a higher-end cocktail bar.
If a customer wants to sip on a high-end tequila, they might order Casamigos from the top-shelf options instead of just a Don Julio Reposado as a call drink.
Anytime you specify the brand of spirit you want in your drink, you are ordering a call drink. But if you want the real premium options, you will typically be calling from the top shelf.
Popular Call Brands Every Bartender Should Know
If you are working as a bartender, or you just want to know your stuff when serving your friends on cocktail night, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the most popular call brands. These include:
- Whiskey/Bourbon: Jack Daniel's, Jameson, Jim Beam, Maker's Mark, Crown Royal
- Vodka: Absolut, Smirnoff, Tito's, Grey Goose
- Rum: Bacardi, Captain Morgan, Malibu
- Tequila: José Cuervo, Espolòn, Patrón
- Gin: Tanqueray, Beefeater, Bombay Sapphire
The stock at each establishment will differ, so too will the most popular call choices. For instance, a sports bar is going to have a different mid-tier shelf than a craft cocktail lounge. But knowing which brands your clientele likes to ask for will make you look better and make your customers happier.
How Call Drinks Benefit Businesses and Bartenders
Calls are significant drivers of bar profits. They offer a higher margin than well options on a per-pour basis and provide more volume than top-shelf. A small price increase from well to call (often $1 to $3) adds up fast across a full shift.
The pour cost for these brands is still manageable because they are purchased in volume and priced competitively by distributors. They are easy to upsell because they aren’t as expensive as top-shelf but are quite a bit more desirable than lower-tier options.
Just asking a single question about a customer’s preference for each order can consistently drive higher sales and revenue for businesses and bartenders.
How to Build a Call-Friendly Menu
A properly designed menu makes it easy to move call drinks night after night. If the menu makes it clear that customers can easily request their preferred brands, the bartender often doesn’t even need to ask for the upsell. The customer makes the decision on their own.
Menus might feature call brands by name in cocktail descriptions, instead of just listing generic spirits. A Tito’s and Soda is a lot more exciting than a Vodka and Soda.
Adding tiered pricing to the menu, so customers can see that a mid-tier option is an excellent value, makes the upsell more appealing.
The business can piggyback on the marketing efforts of major brands by using their names in the cocktails they offer. Absolut Vodka is widely known and consistently marketed. That makes it easier to sell an Absolut and Cranberry because everyone already knows the brand.
Remember to rotate featured brands each season to keep things fresh and exciting for customers and for staff.
Get Your Food and Beverage Service Education Online
Understanding the ins and outs of the art of the call is an important part of establishing yourself in the food and beverage industry. Safety education is another fundamental that every pro needs. That’s where we come in.
At StateFoodSafety, we offer high-quality interactive courses for all your training needs. Our alcohol training, food handler education and other courses are designed to help you get the instruction you need in the most convenient format available. Our 100% online courses allow you to learn when and where you like, making it so much easier to meet state regulations.