The recipe
for your table
Put the genever in the freezer beforehand - it should be syrupy cold.
Fill the tulip-shaped shot glass until it domes above the rim.
Pour or serve a small, cold beer alongside it.
Have the guest take the first sip of genever without using their hands, then alternate with the beer.
The story
The kopstoot is as old as Dutch drinking culture itself: genever - the ancestor of gin, distilled in Schiedam since the seventeenth century - was traditionally served in a tulip glass filled to the rounded rim. Because you cannot lift such a full glass without spilling, the drinker leans forward and takes the first sip with their hands behind their back. The 'kick' of genever followed by beer gave the duo its name. From brown cafés to modern cocktail bars, the kopstoot is Dutch heritage that you can simply order.
The right glass
The kopstoot stands or falls with the right glassware: a tulip-shaped genever glass holding 3.5 to 5 cl - the classic 'full-pour' model - and a small pilsner glass alongside it. The tulip glass, with its narrow waist, keeps the genever cold and the aromas concentrated, while the generous pour is part of the ritual. Complete the picture with an old-Dutch roemer. You can find the small beer glass or vase glass that belongs alongside it in our beer glasses.
Royal Leerdam Intermezzo Shot Glass 3.5 cl with Measuring Line Tuba (12 pieces)
Stella Beer Glass 25 cl - Gift Box
Together € 47,90.
The right tools
For a Kopstoot, use a jigger alongside the glass for precise measuring and a bar spoon for stirring. These are the bar tools we use ourselves; you can find everything in our bar tools & cocktail sets.
Glass set (our choice 01) + 2 bar tools - together € 65,85.
Variations & twists
Young and fresh or old and malty: the choice of jenever defines the kopstoot. Use a craft beer instead of pilsner for modern combinations - a tripel with old jenever is surprisingly good. In Flanders, they drink it as a 'duikboot': the small glass sinks into the beer. Spectacular, but a waste of the jenever. Looking for more inspiration? Browse more than 100 cocktail recipes.
Servingtip
Young jenever is light and fresh, while old jenever is maltier and smoother - serve both and let guests taste them. Pour generously over the rim onto a saucer: here, spilling is not an accident but folklore.
How to fill it above the rim
Fill the 3.5 to 5 cl tulip glass until it bulges above the rim, so the liquid stays in place through surface tension. Set the glass on the table or a saucer first, then fill it, because lifting it afterward is impossible. The jenever comes straight from the freezer and is viscously cold, making it easier to pour and giving the alcohol a smoother feel. Pour the beer just before serving alongside it, into a flute of about 20 cl. Spilling onto the saucer is simply part of it.
How strong is a kopstoot together
The combination adds up to just over one and a half standard drinks. The 3.5 cl of jenever at 35 percent provides 1.2 cl of pure alcohol, and a 20 cl flute of pilsner at 5 percent adds another 1 cl. Together, that is 2.2 cl of pure alcohol in 23.5 cl of liquid, which works out to about 9 percent on average. Because the jenever is downed in one or two sips while the beer is consumed slowly, it feels lighter than it is. Two kopstoten in an evening are already at the upper limit of what is comfortable to drink.
Kopstoot or duikboot
With a kopstoot, the two glasses stand side by side and you set the rhythm yourself: genever first, then beer, or alternating between the two. With the Flemish submarine, you lower the filled genever glass into the beer glass, after which everything must be emptied in one go. This creates spectacle but no flavour, because the genever disappears completely into the pilsner and the temperature is no longer right. In Dutch drinking culture, the submarine is therefore considered the student version. If you want to taste some of the genever, keep the glasses separate.
Young or old genever, and which beer
Young genever contains little malt wine and is neutral, light and grainy, making it a good match for a fresh pilsner. Old genever contains at least 15 percent malt wine, tastes fuller and smoother, and deserves a beer with more body, such as a tripel or amber beer. Korenwijn, with 51 percent malt wine or more, is the heaviest variety and is best drunk neat. Keep the beer small: a 20 cl flute or a 25 cl small pilsner glass. A large glass turns the kopstoot into an evening-long project and takes the tension out of the combination.
Frequently asked questions
What is a kopstoot?
A kopstoot isn't a mixed cocktail but a duo: a tulip-shaped shot glass with 3.5 cl of ice-cold genever and a small glass of pilsner beside it. You take the first sip of genever without using your hands and then alternate with the beer. The kick of the genever gave the combination its name.
Which genever do you use for a kopstoot?
Young genever is light, neutral and fresh; old genever is maltier, smoother and rounder in flavour. Both are valid, so it's mainly a matter of preference. Put the bottle in the freezer beforehand, because a kopstoot should be syrupy cold when it reaches the table.
Why do you drink the first sip without using your hands?
Because the glass is filled right up to the brim and domed above it. You can't pick up such a full glass without spilling, so the drinker leans forward with their hands behind their back. It's folklore from the traditional Dutch brown café, and also the most fun part of the whole ritual.
How much genever goes into a kopstoot?
3.5 cl, poured just over the rim of a tulip-shaped genever glass, also known as a full pourer. Alongside it, serve a flute or small pilsner glass containing about 20 to 25 cl of pilsner. The ritual doesn't work without that tulip-shaped glass; see our genever glasses.
Everything for your bar,
to one address
Glasses in hospitality quality, supplied by the set. Order today, delivered quickly.
Shop the glasses →