The Cocktail Shaker

Shake What Your Mama Gave You

The cocktail shaker is a great tool for mixing, not just alcoholic drinks, but for non-alcoholic drinks as well. Just place the liquid ingredients, herbs, fruit, flavors etc. into a shaker, add ice cubes, close the shaker and shake away!

Shaking is absolutely necessary when mixing juice, sugar, or egg white with your cocktail. Plus, shaking a cocktail is fun, so don't be shy! Give a good hoot and a holler! The melting ice and the friction help blend the spirit, juice, citrus and sugar into a smooth cocktail void of separation. It also creates a lovely froth when using egg whites.

Boston Cobbler Parisian Tin on Tin Speed

There are a few different cocktail shakers: the cobbler, the Boston shaker, Parisian shaker, speed shaker, and tin on tin. I am a fan of the tin on tin shaker. For most people, the all-in-one cobbler shaker will be great because they have the build in strainer, the cap can be used as a measuring tool, and they are inexpensive. Sometimes they are difficult to open.

The speed shaker is use more at clubs where quickness is key. Just a quick shake or two and then back in the glass.

The classic Boston shaker has a glass pint glass on one end and some people believe that it's nice for guests to see the ingredients go into the glass.

The Parisian shaker has a curvaceous metal top. To build your cocktails in a Parisian shaker, open the top lid, flip it over and set it back in the large tin to keep it upright.

The Tin on Tin shaker is like a mix between the classic Boston shaker and the Parisian shaker. In the end it's all personal preference. Whatever feels good to you is what you should use, but for all intents and purposes I will be referring to the Tin on Tin shaker on this site.

How to Use:

Add your drink ingredients into the small tin. Add ice into the other tin.To assemble your Boston shaker, you place the small tin at an angle and pour your drink ingredients into the tin of ice. You want the small side of one tin cuddled on the edge of the other. As you look straight down from the top, you see a thin crescent moon shape created by the tilt of the tins.

When you shake, don’t be timid. You can show off with different moves, up and down, left to right, round your head...whatever gets you in the rhythm. You finish shaking after 10-ish seconds or whenever you feel like it's diluted enough.

To release your shaker use the heel of your palm and firmly strike the top part of the bottom tin. You'll want to aim for either the top or bottom of the crescent moon shape mentioned above. Remember, shaking with ice cools your drink and cooling your drink cools the air inside your shaker, thus creating a vacuum seal. Striking your shaker at the right spot breaks the seal, releases the vacuum and the top tin should loosen. If it doesn't work, try again.

Always use your hands and don't get in the habit of banging it on the counter, this will dent your tins over time and they will lose their shape. Always rinse your tin with water after each cocktail and give them a proper clean at the end of your session.