Glossary
Dilution
The water that mixes into a drink as ice melts during shaking or stirring, an intended ingredient rather than a flaw.
Dilution is the water that melts off ice and blends into a cocktail while it is shaken or stirred. Recipes are written assuming a certain amount of it will happen, so a properly made drink is never just spirit and mixer, it is spirit, mixer, and water working together to soften and round out the flavor.
Shaking dilutes faster than stirring because the ice breaks apart and the liquid agitates harder, which is one reason citrus and juice based drinks are shaken while spirit-forward drinks are stirred more gently. Ice quality affects it too, since smaller or lower quality ice melts faster and can over-dilute a drink before it even gets cold enough.
Under-diluting leaves a drink tasting harsh and too strong, while over-diluting leaves it watery and flat, so timing the shake or stir matters as much as the ingredients themselves. Larger, denser ice cubes melt more slowly and give more control over the process. A common misunderstanding is treating dilution as something to avoid entirely, when the real goal is simply hitting the right amount for the drink being made.