A bartender stirring a drink.
Should You Shake Or Stir Your Cocktail?

NEWS

By ANDREW AMELINCKX
Many bartenders would agree that James Bond's signature martini order is wrong since it's believed shaking the drink bruises the alcohol.
If a cocktail's ingredients only contain different types of alcohol, it should be stirred, like gin or vodka and vermouth in a martini.
Stirring doesn't dilute the drink as much as shaking, so other strong, notable cocktails that require stirring are Negronis, Manhattans, the old-fashioned, and the boulevardier.
Cocktail drinks that contain ingredients other than alcohol, like juice, egg whites, or milk products, should be shaken and not stirred.
Shaking helps blend disparate flavors like alcohol and citrus or cream, and guarantees the ingredients don't separate in the glass.
Shaking also aerates the ingredients for a lighter-tasting drink with a frothy head and quickly cools it down in a way that stirring can't.