Cocktail Time with Emily: Shaken or stirred?
BY EMILY O’CONNOR
What’s shaking with your home bar? I’m
about to stir it up.
With the right tools and technique, any-
one (of age) can enjoy their favorite craft
cocktail without having to leave the house.
Is there a drink you miss from when we
were able to go to bars (looking at you,
b ourbon s our with egg whites)? Learning
about shaking versus stirring cocktails is
a good fi rst step toward becoming a home
craft bartender.
Shaking is about the ice. The number
one purpose for incorporating ice is to chill
a cocktail — but the reason for choosing to
shake versus stir is to control how the ice
chills the cocktail.
For instance, stirring a spirit-heavy
cocktail like a martini rather than shak-
ing it allows ingredients to chill with-
out becoming overly diluted and cloudy. A
lemon drop, which has citrus, simple syrup
and alcohol, needs a little more dilution to
round out the fl avors — so James Bond’s
shaken martinis are not as cool as you may
have thought.
Recipes typically advise one technique
Rittenhouse Rye whiskey sours with egg whites.
or another. A good rule is that if the recipe
calls for juice and/or a sweetening syrup,
shake it.
a dry-shake. A dry shake means shaking
with the people you love. Cheers.
When it comes to tools, I prefer a dou-
your liquid ingredients together for about
Whiskey sour (yields one serving)
ble-tin Boston style shaker because it is
30 seconds before adding ice and shaking
light and gets cold. Using a pint glass and
again. Then, double strain using a fi ne mesh Ingredients
• 2 ounces Rittenhouse Rye
tin Boston shaker can be great for begin-
strainer (I recommend Hawthorne strain-
• ¾ ounce lemon juice
ners because the pint glass allows you to
ers). This renders a thick, beautiful foam
• ½ ounce agave syrup (equal parts agave
see what is happening. The glass can also
that makes cocktails smooth and velvety
and boiling water, chilled)
double as a stirring vessel. There are tons of like merengue. If you are worried about
• One egg white, separated
shakers to pick from. I recommend avoid-
yolks or shells, separate your whites into
• Five dashes Angostura Aromatic Bitters
ing the ill-fi tting, common Cobbler shaker.
the tin before adding other ingredients.
Preparation
There are many subtleties to the tech-
I recommend beginners put uncooked
Separate an egg white into a shaker tin.
nique of the proper stir and shake that will
rice in an empty tin and shake it in diff erent
Add all ingredients except bitters and shake
make noticeable results in the fl avor and
ways, taking note of how the rice moves.
without ice for 30 seconds.
quality of your cocktails. When building a
Keep in mind, the most important part
Add ice and shake for another 30 sec-
stirred cocktail, always add ingredients to
of home bartending is enjoying great drinks
an empty stirring glass fi rst, then fi ll it with
ice. Using the spiral handle of a long bar
spoon as a guide, gently spin the ice in the
glass. This should be relatively silent. Con-
tinue stirring like this until you’re bored or
NEW GO KART TRACK
your arm gets tired.
When shaking, build into your tin, add
ice, top with either your other shaker tin or
GO KARTS
pint glass and shake hard for 20 to 30 sec-
MINI GOLF
onds or until the tin is frosty and hard to
GYROXTREME
hold. If you fi t your top in at an angle, it
ROCK WALL
off ers an easy release, popping the small
KIDDIE RIDES
gap above the seam with the heel of your
AND MORE!
hand. I like to hold the shaker horizontally
SEASIDE, OREGON
over my shoulder because it is easier to
balance.
HWY 101 (1/4 mi South of Seaside) • 2735 S. Roosevelt • 503-738-2076
When working with egg whites, use
OPEN DAILY 11 A M T O 6 P M
Emily O’Connor
onds. Double strain into chilled coupe or
old fashioned glass, allowing the foam to
set up for at least 10-15 seconds.
Slowly drip bitters over the foam in a
pattern. Use the end of a garnish toothpick
to swirl the bitters like latte art. Garnish and
enjoy,
Emily O’Connor works at the Pickled
Fish in Long Beach, Washington.
Welcome Spring Breakers!
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THURSDAY, APRIL 8, 2021 // 7