Fifth (unit)
A fifth is a unit of volume formerly used for wine and distilled beverages in the United States, equal to one fifth of a US liquid gallon, or ; it has been superseded by the metric bottle size of 750 ml, sometimes called a metric fifth, which is the standard capacity of wine bottles worldwide and is approximately 1% smaller. History Before the mid-19th century, the capacity of British alcohol bottles used for wine and distilled liquors was nominally a quart, but the actual capacity varied considerably. Four primary styles existed, with different average capacities: 759 ± 27 ml (715–810 range); 781 ± 47 ml (724–880); 808 ± 49 ml (739–835); and approximately 1130 ml, the "imperial wine quart". Beer and cider bottles had a different range of sizes. In 1842, it was reported that ordinary wine bottles were 1/6 of an imperial gallon, that is, 758 ml. In the late 19th century, liquor in the US was often sold in bottles which appeared to hold , but in fact contained less than a quart and were called "fifths" or commercial quarts. At this time, one-fifth of a gallon was a common legal threshold for the difference between selling by