Southside Sips: Mover el Esqueleto

Do you know why some drinks are shaken and some are stirred? There’s actually a method to the mixing choice.

For drinks that are booze-centric (think a Manhattan or a Martini) are stirred and not shaken. Why? Because you want both the necessary chilling and diluting benefit of the ice, but you also aesthetically want drinks of this nature to be crystal clear, not “bruised” (aka, shadowy or foggy), which is what happens when you shake. Drinks that contain both spirits and juices or dairy or aquafaba get the shaky-shaky treatment because the cold, dilution and aeration created from shaking is part and parcel to the look and texture of the drink in question. Think… Espresso Martinis, Margaritas, Sidecars, Whiskey Sours.

The latter drinks, while not as a rule, also tend to be oh-so nice in a tall highball, cool and quenching and perfect for summer, which, as it so happens, starts today!

We are super-duper digging this lovely little mix from Bridgehampton’s Almond Restaurant, which includes a favorite local ingredient of ours: Sagaponack Farm Distillery‘s Rhubarb Liqueur. Yum. Also: This is the last weekend in all likelihood for local strawberries, people — go getcha some to add a chef’s kiss to final flavor combo.

They tell us the name means “boogie” or “get your groove on” — either way, it sounds like a good idea. Even better: If you want a full-on dance party, you can batch this up for a crowd of your favorite fleet-of-foot friends. Happy Summer, folks!