Mix glasses

The capacity determines how much you can make at once. A mixing glass of 55 to 65 cl is good for one, at most two cocktails, because alongside the drink you need room for a decent amount of ice. From 70 cl upwards you make three at a time, and that is the size most used behind a bar. The models of around 80 cl, sometimes footed, are meant for working ahead.

After that, look at the base and the rim. A heavy, thick base keeps the glass stable when you stir with force and does not draw the cold away immediately. A proper pouring spout is no luxury: without one, the drink runs down the outside as soon as you strain. The yarai pattern, that diagonal diamond cut you see on many models, is Japanese in origin and gives grip to wet hands. If your main concern is keeping the glass cold, a double-walled model is the logical choice.

Fill the mixing glass two-thirds to three-quarters with ice, and use large blocks rather than crushed. Small ice melts too fast and dilutes more than you want. Pour in the ingredients, slide the bar spoon down along the wall and stir with the back of the spoon against the glass, for roughly twenty to thirty seconds. You can hear when it is going well: an even, low sound and no rattling.

You stir anything made only of spirits and vermouth. A dry martini and a manhattan are the textbook examples, and a negroni can be either stirred or built straight in the glass. Then strain over a fresh block of ice or into a chilled bowl, never over the ice you stirred with.

A mixing glass mostly has to deal with sugar and liqueur, and that rinses away less easily than you would think. Rinse straight away with warm water after making a sweet cocktail, because dried syrup leaves a sticky ring at the height where the ice stood.

Most models are dishwasher safe, but washing by hand is quicker and spares the cut patterns. With a yarai pattern, water stays behind in the grooves: let the glass drain upside down and polish it afterwards with a lint-free cloth. Chill a mixing glass with iced water rather than in the freezer, and don't rinse it with hot water straight afterwards, because with thick glass that temperature difference is the most common cause of cracking.

A mixing glass only works together with the rest. The long spoons with twisted stems are with the bar spoons, the measures you use to get the ratio right are with the jiggers, and everything that has to be shaken rather than stirred is with the cocktail shakers. If you strain into a bowl, you will find those with the martini glasses or, in the smaller format, with the nick and nora glasses.