Layering a drink is the third oldest drink preparation technique, and it was most popular in the late 1800s and early 1900s, especially in Europe, where bartenders concocted “pousse-cafes”: beautiful drinks composed of layer upon layer of liquor, liqueur, and syrup.

LAYER your first drink B52 Probably no shooter is better known than this brown bombshell. In a shooter glass, layer the following ingredients carefully, in the listed order: • 0.5 oz. Coffee liqueur • 0.5 oz. Irish Cream • 0.5 oz. Triple Sec If you are feeling venturous, light the top layer at the very last minute and serve it flaming.

These drinks have died out, however, and layered drinks exist now because they were rejuvenated in the 1960s and 1970s by the “shooter” drinking fashion. Many of the popular shooters like the B52 and the Brain Hemorrhage are layered.

Layering is also referred to as "floating" and works like this: the ingredients are poured into a shot glass one at a time in the order listed. They are carefully poured over a bar spoon so as to keep the layers separate. Heaviest gravity first followed by lighter ones (see Drinks gravity Chart below).The layers remain separate because of the difference in density and sugar content. The drink can be poured to within 2 mm of the top of the glass.

As a technique, layering only affects the drink in so far as you taste the different layers in order.

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Layered shots work even better when the ingredients and glasses are chilled.

Drinks Gravity Chart

The following lists the gravities of several popular alcohols listed from heaviest to lightest. As a rule the greater the difference in gravities, the easier it is to keep two alcohols from mixing.     

Remember: 

Heaviest first, as the lighter alcohol will float on the heavier one.

	Name	Gravity
	Grenadine	1.18
	Crème de Cassis	1.18
	Anisette	1.175
	Crème de Almond	1.16
	Crème de Noyaux	1.165
	Coffee liqueur  Crème de Banana  Crème de Cacao White Crème de Cacao	1.14
	Coffee Liquor Parfait d'Amour	1.13
	Cherry liqueur  Green Crème de Menthe Strawberry liqueur   White Crème de Menthe	1.12
	Blue Curacao Galliano	1.11
	Amaretto Blackberry Liquor Blue Curacao	1.1
	Apricot Liquor   Tia Maria   Triple sec	1.09
	Amaretto di Saranno   Drambuie Frangelico Orange Curacao	1.08
	Benedictine D.O.M.	1.07
	Campari   Apricot brandy Blackberry brandy Cherry brandy Peach brandy Yellow Chartreuse	1.06
	Midori Melon Liquor Rock and Rye	1.05
	Benedictine   Brandy   Cherry Liquor   Cointreau   Kummel   Peach liqueur   Peppermint schnapps Sloe gin	1.04
	Green Chartreuse	1.01
	Water	1
	Tuaca	0.98
	Southern Comfort	0.97