Mandarin Monday is a recurring series aimed at enhancing your Chinese language skills by exploring enjoyable and useful phrases and characters.
In continuation of our recent posts about beer and wine in Chinese, we are wrapping up this series focused on alcoholic beverages with essential vocabulary for spirits and cocktails.
Spirits and Liquor
To start, let's examine some of the most common spirits available.
Whiskey: 威士忌 wēishìjì
Vodka: 伏特加 fútèjiā
Gin: 杜松子酒 dùsōngzǐ jiǔ
Rum: 朗姆酒 lǎngmǔ jiǔ
Tequila: 龙舌兰酒 lóngshélán jiǔ
Mezcal: 梅斯卡尔 méisīkǎ'ěr
Brandy: 白兰地 báilándì
Cognac: 干邑 gànyì
Baijiu: 白酒 báijiǔ
Sake: 清酒 qīngjiǔ
Soju: 韩国烧酒 hánguó shāojiǔ
Shochu: 烧酎 shāozhù
Common Mixers
Next, here are some of the most frequently used mixers to accompany your chosen spirit.
Tonic Water: 汤力水 tānglì shuǐ
Soda Water: 苏打水 sūdǎ shuǐ
Cola: 可乐 kělè
Coke Zero: 零度可乐 língdù kělè
Diet Coke: 健怡可乐 jiànyí kělè
Sprite: 雪碧 xuěbì
Ginger Ale: 姜汁汽水 jiāngzhī qìshuǐ
Red Bull: 红牛 hóngniú
Cranberry Juice: 蔓越莓汁 mànyuèméi zhī
Orange Juice: 橙汁 chéngzhī
Popular Cocktails
Now, let's look at some well-known cocktails. Similar to our exploration of various beer brands, cocktail names can be transliterations of English or literal translations.
Cocktail: 鸡尾酒 jīwěijiǔ
Martini: 马提尼 mǎtíní
Mojito: 莫吉托 mòjítuō
Margarita: 玛格丽塔 mǎgélìtǎ
Gin & Tonic: 金汤力 jīntānglì
Long Island Iced Tea: 长岛冰茶 chángdǎo bīngchá
Bloody Mary: 血腥玛丽 xuèxīng mǎlì
Black Russian: 黑俄罗斯 hēi éluósī
White Russian: 白俄罗斯 bái éluósī
Old Fashioned: 古典(鸡尾酒) gǔdiǎn (jīwěijiǔ)
Manhattan: 曼哈顿 mànhādùn
Whiskey Sour: 威士忌酸 wēishìjì suān
Tequila Sunrise: 龙舌兰日出 lóngshélán rìchū
Singapore Sling: 新加坡司令 xīnjiāpō sīlìng
Screwdriver: 螺丝起子 luósī qǐzi
Cosmopolitan: 柯梦波丹 kēmèngbōdān
Irish Coffee: 爱尔兰咖啡 ài'ěrlán kāfēi
Negroni: 尼格罗尼 nígéluóní
Daiquiri: 代基里 dàijīlǐ
Espresso Martini: 浓缩咖啡马提尼 nóngsuō kāfēi mǎtíní
Highball: 高杯酒 gáobēijiǔ
Aperol Spritz: 阿佩罗橙光 āpèiluó chéngguāng
Mocktail: 无酒精鸡尾酒 wújiǔjīng jīwěijiǔ
Popular Spirit Brands
Finally, here are a few well-known spirit brands. Some of these names are transliterations while others are literal translations.
Absolut Vodka: 绝对伏特加 juéduì fútèjiā
Grey Goose: 灰雁伏特加 huīyàn fútèjiā
Hendrick's: 亨利爵士 hēnglìjuéshì
Tanqueray: 添加利 tiānjiālì
Gordon's: 哥顿金酒 gēdùn jīnjiǔ
Bacardi: 百加得 bǎijiādé
Captain Morgan: 摩根船长 mógēn chu
We’re wrapping up our alcoholic series with all the key vocabulary you need for spirits and cocktails.
