Neat or on the rocks

The next time you’re around connoisseurs of liquor, be careful to drop your phrases correctly. In bartending, the term straight up refers to an alcoholic drink that is shaken or stirred with ice and then strained and served without ice in a stemmed glass. Technically it is contrasted with a drink served neat — a single, unmixed liquor served without being chilled and without any water, ice, or other mixer. Neat drinks and rocks drinks are often served in a rocks glass but may be served in a shot glass or a cocktail glass. “On the rocks” means just a rock glass with the drink and cubes of ice. While “neat” and straight up are often used interchangeably, that doesn’t make the usage necessarily correct. So remember, “neat” is just the drink, “on the rocks” is the drink with ice only and “straight up” is a drink that is shaken or stirred with ice but finally served after straining.