Build

Technique

In a built drink, you pour every ingredient straight into the serving glass, with no shaker or mixing glass.

Also called: built in the glass · built · building

What Build means

A highball, a gin and tonic and a Cuba Libre are classic built drinks. The glass never meets a shaker, so a carbonated mixer keeps its bubbles. A built drink also means fewer tools. You only need a glass, ice and a bar spoon, which suits a beginner with a short shelf of gear.

It sounds right that a built drink is not mixed at all. Most get a short stir in the glass, just enough to blend the ingredients without knocking out the bubbles. The bar spoon only needs to move the ice and the drink a little.

Layering is the careful version of a build, and it is a different job. Each pour stays on its own level, where a regular build lets the ingredients mix into one drink. Carbonated mixers such as soda water or tonic water are poured last in a regular build.

How to build a cocktail

You need a serving glass, ice, a bar spoon and the bottles named in the recipe. Use the glass you plan to serve the drink in.

1.Fill the serving glass with ice before anything else goes in.
2.Pour the spirit over the ice, then add the mixer.
3.Give the drink one short, gentle turn with a bar spoon, just enough to blend.
4.Garnish it and serve it in the same glass.

Build compared

StirA stirred drink is mixed in a mixing glass and then strained. A built drink is made and served in the same glass.
ShakeA shaken drink is mixed in a tin and strained. A built drink skips the tin, so it keeps its bubbles.
LayerLayering is a careful build where each pour stays separate. A regular build lets the ingredients mix together.

Related terms

Ingredients

Put it to use in your next drink

Garçon explains every step as you make the drink.