A great example of a quintessential shaken cocktail is the lemon drop. They are mostly composed of alcohol, and contain juice. Typically, cocktails that are best shaken are ones that should be served ice cold. Shaking is the flashiest way of mixing a cocktail, and it’s the best when you’re making a cocktail that requires the most chilling, dilution, and integration of multiple ingredients.
The four most common ways of mixing a cocktail are: shaking, stirring, blending, and building. There are a few reasons why drinks are mixed the way they are, and it typically is dependent upon the cocktail you’re constructing.
Having a drink at a bar in Philly will often have you wondering why some drinks are shaken and some are stirred. The Ins and Outs of Cocktail Construction