Proper mixing is a key component in creating a cocktail because it not only combines the ingredients, but also chills the drink while adding the right level of dilution. While getting it right takes some practice, it doesn’t take a super spy to learn the secrets of crafting the perfect mixed drink – instead, it is helpful to know the basic principles that distinguish cocktails that are shaken from those that are stirred. 

In order to be confident about the appropriate method, we can start with understanding the chemistry that is at work in the process. At its heart, it is the composition of ingredients that determines the correct method for blending them.

When to Stir Cocktails?

Stirring is best for spirit forward cocktails featuring clear ingredients, like Old Fashioneds and Manhattans. Stirring limits dilution of the ice and allows the spirits to take center stage and shine. 

When to Shake Cocktails?

In contrast, shaking rapidly chills and dilutes the cocktail ingredients while simultaneously aerating the finished product for a well-mixed drink. This is the standard method for cocktails that contain citrus juices, cream, or egg whites for a fizzy or frothy effect, such as Margaritas and Sidecars. The resulting cocktails are generally cloudy or opaque, lacking the clarity of their stirred counterparts.

To create either kind of cocktail, there are a few necessary tools of the trade:

Stirred Cocktails

Stirred cocktails are best prepared in a Yarai Mixing Glass using a traditional Twisted Cocktail Barspoon, which glides along the inside perimeter of the glass. You can then use a Julep Strainer to keep the ice from falling in while the cocktail is poured into the glass.

Shaken Cocktails

Shaken cocktails are mixed in a cocktail shaker, which can either come with a built-in strainer, as is the case with the Cobbler Shaker, or an external strainer, such as a Hawthorne Strainer. If you want to make sure tiny ice crystals don’t end up in your drink, you will need to double strain using both a Hawthorne Strainer as well as a Cone Strainer.

Hopefully after reading this guide, you’ve come to your own realization that when James Bond ordered his vodka martini shaken, not stirred, it was an obscure preference. While the use of vodka can be traced to the preference of Ian Fleming, Bond’s creator, the mix of clear liquors mean the martini should rightfully be stirred rather than shaken. At the end of the day, all of these are simply guidelines, it’s your home bar and you can craft the cocktail however you enjoy it!