The glass is one half. The other half is the part it sits in. A ski boot shot glass is only ever as good as its binding: here is how to spot real shot ski bindings, and what you can screw them onto.
Last updated: 28 August 2026
What is a ski boot shot glass with a binding?
A shot glass shaped like a ski boot that clicks into a working miniature ski binding, and clicks straight back out again. The binding is screwed onto a base: a wall, a serving board, an old ski, a Miniski. The difference between that and a glass holder with a magnet or a sticky pad is not cosmetic. A real binding holds the glass even when four full glasses are lifted together, and it lets go again when you want to wash up.
💡 Glass and binding belong together: the set of four brings both, plus every mounting screw. On their own, the parts are only sold as spares.
Real shot ski bindings or just a magnet? Five questions
The market calls a lot of things a “binding” that are nothing of the sort: glued-on metal plates, moulded plastic shells, magnetic discs. Before you buy, ask five questions. If three of them come back as a no, what you are holding is a decorative object that was never built to be lifted by four people at once.
1. Does the glass click in — and back out? This is the question that decides it. Holding on is not enough. A holder that will not release the glass in a controlled way is useless at the sink and unpredictable in the air.
2. Are the screws included? Sounds trivial, is not. A binding you cannot fasten to anything is a moulded shape. Our set of four comes with every mounting screw, plus lanyards with a matching eyelet.
3. Is there a swappable screw? On a real binding, the Z-value screw can be swapped for an eyelet screw. That is the proof that there is a moving part in there and not a cast lump with a groove in it.
4. Does it have any depth to it? Ours measures 110 × 38 × 24 mm. There is material in that. A three-millimetre plate with a print on it is not a binding.
5. Is the glass removable or glued in? Glued in means you will never get it properly clean, and one breakage ends the whole object. Removable means you wash them one by one and replace them one by one.
A magnet is perfectly fine as long as a light plastic glass sits on something flat and stays put. It becomes a problem at exactly the moment you bought the thing for — when four full glasses of real glass are lifted together and the load comes in sideways.
Glass or plastic: the honest comparison
We make glass, so let us say straight away where glass is the wrong choice. By a pool, on a beach, at a festival where half the field is walking around barefoot, in the barefoot area of a sports hall: glass has no business being there, full stop. We do not have a plastic glass in the range, so in those cases the answer is another supplier, not us.
Everywhere else, glass wins, for three reasons that all come down to the experience. It feels different in the hand, it looks different in the photo, and you can see what is in it. Stainless steel cannot do the last one, and plastic clouds over time because dishwashers and sand leave micro-scratches behind.
Our glasses hold 4 cl (40 ml), measure 69 × 36 × 74 mm and are made in Austria from our own glass mould. They are conformity-assessed and carry a fill line with the CE-M mark under the EU Measuring Instruments Directive 2014/32/EU — in everyday language: they are calibrated measures. What that is worth behind a bar depends on the country you are pouring in; the section on bars and clubs below has the detail. And they are dishwasher-safe. Hot drinks are fine as well: mulled wine and Jagertee are no problem, neither for the glass nor for the binding.
What we do not claim: that they are unbreakable. It is real glass. It can break. The difference to a glued-in model is that then one glass is broken, not the whole object.
What is in the ski shot glasses set, and what the colours are for
The set of four holds four bindings, four glasses, all the mounting screws and four lanyards with a matching eyelet — ski boot shot glasses with bindings, complete, with nothing left to source. The binding is developed in Germany and made from impact-resistant POM from the Chiemgau, which stays tough down to around minus 40 degrees; it is assembled by hand at the Pidinger workshops of Lebenshilfe Berchtesgadener Land. We are proud of that.
Five colours, all at the same price (as of August 2026). Each one has a purpose that goes beyond taste:
- Multicolour is the one genuine practical advantage in the whole field: everybody gets their own colour, and the question “which one was mine?” does not come up again all evening.
- Glow in the dark solves the same problem a different way. In a dimmed hut you can still find your glass.
- Black and white are meant for walls and serving boards, when the object is supposed to do the work and not the individual glass.
- Arctic Flame is simply the eye-catcher.
Mount number zero: the shot round your neck
Before we get to bases, here is the version that needs none at all. Undo the Z-value screw, put in the eyelet screw that comes with the set, hook in the lanyard, done. Now the binding and the glass hang round your neck.
For a lot of people this is the real use case. On the piste everybody sees you anyway. The thing round your neck makes sure that does not stop after the last turn: at a party, at a club night, at an evening in the hut, everyone has their own glass with them, it does not get lost, it is not left standing anywhere, and when somebody tops up, nobody has to go looking. For club and company parties it is also the simplest answer to the question of how you collect the glasses back in: you do not, everyone takes theirs home.
As table decoration: the other half of the year
The binding and the glass do not have to hold a drink at all times. Most people miss that. Screwed onto a Miniski, they stand on every place setting as table decoration and turn into a place card along the way, because you simply stand the name in the glass.
That works at weddings with a mountain theme, at club anniversaries, at company parties and at any winter event that is about more than the drinks. The difference to bought table decoration is that nobody throws it away. At the end of the evening every guest takes their Miniski and glass home. It is decoration, place card and party favour in one, and you pay for it once.
For planning, that means: count one place setting per person, not one glass in circulation. With bigger groups, the colours are worth a thought. Four different ones per table make it easier to keep track than four identical ones with little name tags.
For a wall, the same idea applies in a quieter way: four bindings side by side on a board, glasses clicked in, and there is your hut look in the party basement. If you are screwing them to a living room wall, take black or white — then the object does the work, not the colour.
What to screw the ski shot glass holder onto
The screws that come with the set are wood screws. That settles what works directly and what does not.
| Base | Does it work? | What to watch out for |
|---|---|---|
| Serving board, wooden board | Ideal | Pilot-drill first, the screws bite straight away |
| Old ski | Yes, expressly intended | Pilot-drill Ø 3.5–4.1 mm, 9.5 mm deep (tape on the drill bit as a marker), never through the base, deburr the edges, degrease the wax |
| Miniski | Yes | The smallest base that makes sense, and it gives you the one round your neck |
| Wooden wall, beam, shelf board | Yes | Straight in with the screws that come with the set |
| Masonry, concrete, tile, plasterboard | Only with your own plugs | The screws in the box are wood screws. Plasterboard needs cavity fixings; with tile you drill through the tile into the load-bearing wall behind it |
| Glass, metal, sheet steel, gluing | No | Nothing for a wood screw to grip; hot glue and silicone give up in the cold and under sideways load |
Before you put any hole in a wall: find the cables. In the UK, BS 7671 defines prescribed zones for cables in walls — within 150 mm of the top of the wall, within 150 mm of an internal or external corner, and vertically or horizontally in line with any socket or switch. Treat that as a likely route, not a guarantee: run a cable and stud detector over the spot, leave the light switched on while you work, and drill shallow. Second rule for glasses on a wall: not above head height and not above where people sit. It is real glass.
The smallest base of all is a wooden Miniski. Binding on, glass clicked in, and the table decoration becomes something you wear. It is also the answer for everyone who has no old ski lying around and still wants to build something.
Spacing, and how many sets you need
The figure that goes round internationally is 18 to 20 inches, so 46 to 51 cm. That is the US convention, and for what we are doing here it is too wide: at 50 cm the outer glass would sit right in the zone that flexes when the ski is lifted.
The maths goes like this. On a 170 cm ski, no glass belongs in the outermost 25 to 30 cm (10 to 12 in), because the tip and the tail flex when the ski comes up and every shot placed there tips over. That leaves roughly 110 to 120 cm of usable length. Four positions mean three gaps, not four, which works out at 37 to 40 cm. We deliberately go a little tighter and recommend 35 cm, about 14 in. For comparison: on our own Shotski the glasses sit 25 cm apart — but there the position is fixed and accurate to the millimetre, and when you build your own you need room for marking up by eye.
Not out of stinginess, but because of the photo. At 35 cm you stand shoulder to shoulder, arms behind each other's backs, heads at nearly the same height. From about 50 cm on you are standing next to each other instead of together, and it shows in the picture.
How many sets? Count in sets:
- Four people: one set.
- Six people: two sets. Two bindings are left over, and they go on the wall or turn into ones you wear.
- Eight people: two sets as well. No group gets more than eight glasses on one base lifted in any coordinated way; beyond that you take two boards or two skis side by side.
For bars, clubs and company parties
Because the glasses carry a fill line and the CE-M mark under the Measuring Instruments Directive, they are built for paid service and not just for the shelf. What that is worth depends on where you pour. In German-speaking countries, drinks that fall under measuring law may only be sold from a vessel with a fill line, and mulled wine, grog and punch are expressly among them — coffee and cocktails are not, mulled wine very much is. That is exactly the point where the discussion usually starts at a club bar or a hut counter, and the fill line ends it. In the UK the rules are written differently: gin, rum, vodka and whisky may only be sold in 25 ml or 35 ml and multiples of those (Weights and Measures (Intoxicating Liquor) Order 1988), so 4 cl is not a permitted British serving measure for those four spirits. In the US there is no nationwide fill-line requirement at all; serving rules sit with the individual states. None of that touches what the glass is good for at a club fest, a hotel bar or as the glass the guest takes home — it only decides what you pour into it when money changes hands.
After that, what counts behind the bar is turnover, and it works out differently from normal glasses. The ski boot shot is never needed on its own, always in rounds of four: one set serves one round, and with a dishwasher running you get a long way through a normal evening on two to three sets. The classic bar rule of thumb, seats times three, does not apply here, because this is not a standard glass but an announced appearance. If the glass is part of the ticket price and the guests keep it, you count one per person instead. Both models work, they are just costed differently: a one-off purchase against a line item per guest that has to come back in through the ticket.
A set of four covers four places, so one glass costs you roughly a quarter of the set price, binding, screws and lanyard included. Anyone costing out “ticket plus glass” should have that in mind before the combined price is set. How this works out at a bar is covered in detail in the piece on the Shotski for a hotel bar.
Washing, care, replacing
Glass out, glass in the dishwasher, glass back in. That is all there is to it, and it is the reason removable beats glued in. The binding itself stays on the base and gets wiped down.
If more than one part is missing, buying singles does not pay. Four bindings and four glasses bought separately cost more together than a complete new set, and the set brings screws and lanyards with it. The single parts are not meant for rebuilding the whole thing, only for the case where one glass has broken.
A word on how long the base lasts: if you mount onto an old ski, the binding is not the part that gives up first. It is the topsheet at the screw positions, when the holes were not pilot-drilled. That is why pilot-drilling sits so high up the list.
From shot ski boots and bindings to a whole ski
If you want to put the whole thing on a proper ski: choosing the ski, pilot-drilling and the five mistakes almost everybody makes are covered in the Shotski article. Everything about the finished device is over there.
And if you do not want to drill at all, our modular Shotski comes ready made, complete with bindings and glasses. Both routes run on the same binding and the same glass, so you can rebuild at any time.
For bigger groups, it is worth a look at the apres ski party in a function room, which deals with quantities, turnover and washing up behind the bar.
Frequently asked questions
Are the ski boot shot glasses dishwasher-safe?
Yes. The glass comes out of the binding and goes into the dishwasher. That is exactly the advantage over glued-in models, where the whole base would have to go into the sink with it.
Can you screw the binding to a wall?
Onto a wooden wall, a beam or a shelf board, straight in with the screws that come with the set. For masonry, concrete, tile or plasterboard you need your own plugs; what is in the box are wood screws.
How far apart should the glasses sit?
35 cm, about 14 in. The maths would give 37 to 40, and we deliberately go a little tighter. Any wider and the group drifts apart. If you are building a ski with shot glasses yourself, keep the outermost 25 to 30 cm of a 170 cm ski free, because everything tips over there when the ski is lifted.
Can you wear the glass round your neck?
Yes, and for a lot of people that is the version that gets used most often. Z-value screw out, the eyelet screw that comes with the set in, hook in the lanyard. Then you need no base at all.
How much does it hold, and can it take hot drinks?
4 cl, that is 40 ml. The glass measures 69 × 36 × 74 mm and carries a fill line with the CE-M mark under the EU Measuring Instruments Directive, so it is a calibrated measure in the everyday sense. Whether you may sell from it depends on national serving rules — in the UK, gin, rum, vodka and whisky have to be poured in 25 ml or 35 ml. Hot liquids are fine: mulled wine and Jagertee are no problem for the glass or the binding.
What does it work out at per person?
A set of four covers four places, so one place costs roughly a quarter of the set price, binding, screws and lanyard included. The current set price is on the product page. Buying single parts afterwards is not worth it: four bindings and four glasses separately come to more than a new set and bring no screws with them.
Can you use the ski boot shot glasses as table decoration or place cards?
Yes, and that is the other half of their year. Screwed onto a Miniski they stand on the place setting, and the name card goes in the glass. At the end of the evening every guest takes theirs home, which makes decoration, place card and party favour one and the same expense.
Will a bigger glass fit the binding?
The binding is built for the 4 cl ski boot glass. Whether other glasses fit is something we have not tested.
Are the glasses available in plastic?
Not from us. We make real glass. For pools, beaches or barefoot areas, plastic is the right choice, and then another supplier is the right address.
Sources and notes
- Dimensions, material, contents and colour options: Apres Allstars product data, as of August 2026.
- Manufacture: glass mould Austria, bindings from impact-resistant POM from the Chiemgau, assembled by hand at the Pidinger workshops of Lebenshilfe Berchtesgadener Land in Piding (Bavaria).
- Measuring: conformity assessment, fill line and CE-M marking under the Measuring Instruments Directive 2014/32/EU (MID).
- Spacing recommendation: our own calculation based on the usable ski length, cross-checked against shoulder widths in DIN 33402-2.
- Mounting: drill diameter and depth follow common ski binding mounting practice; cable routing in walls per BS 7671 (prescribed zones).
- UK serving measures: Weights and Measures (Intoxicating Liquor) Order 1988 — gin, rum, vodka and whisky in 25 ml or 35 ml and multiples of those. In the US, serving rules sit with the individual states.
- All prices are gross prices from our shop, as of August 2026.