A while ago I wrote in a journal update about an idea I’d had for a better cobbler-style cocktail shaker design. I figured it probably deserves its own topic, so here we go.
I was inspired to put together this design while watching the following video, reviewing a supposedly highly improved (and therefore expensive) model that raised a ton of money on IndieGoGo and that people apparently love.
I actually liked a lot of the elements in the design, which seem like thoughtful improvements on the typical cobbler shaker. The screw top, extensive built-in measurements, etc. But then I saw this part of the video (timestamped below, just click Play), and it seemed clear that in actual use this thing was not that great in at least one critical aspect.
I mean… that’s pretty sad, right? The straining capacity and flow rate is at least as bad as, and perhaps even worse than, many cobbler shakers I’ve used (including this also well-liked, also insulated, and much cheaper oXo model). So many of the potential benefits and innovations in this thing kind of count for naught in actual use, in my view. And thus I decided to see if I could come up with a better design that would actually solve this problem, unlike any other cobbler model I’ve seen.
This is a first pass at it, a quick sketch in Google Draw actually. 
What I did was actually start with a more Parisian shaker design, aiming in particular for that larger straining surface. I can see some potential weak points there, with ice slamming against that straining mesh repeatedly, and possibly weakening it over time. I have some thoughts about that as well. But overall I think any issues with it are probably solvable. Meanwhile it provides similar benefits to the “Elevated Craft Cocktail Shaker” demonstrated above, but also two much larger straining surfaces, one with a fine mesh so you can potentially avoid even having to use a second strainer for double straining. I would also have halfway markers on the measurements to allow for e.g. 1.5oz, 2.5 oz, etc.
The way it works is you have a thin strainer disc that actually locks-in to the tin between the top and the bottom. It has locking pins that pop-in to channels in the base to keep it in place, and probably a rubber gasket. And then it has threads on the upper part to attach the top (which includes extensive measurements). You could potentially use this in two ways, I suppose. One where you leave the strainer out until after shaking, then attach it, which admittedly seems less convenient. The other would be to have it in place during shaking (putting it on after adding ice into the tin), just like the 3-piece typical cobbler shaker. To my mind it depends only on what is more convenient as to which would be designed for.
So I’m curious, would you buy this for $70 or so? (that’s the cost of the fancy one demo’d above) Do you see any other design issues? Let me know what you think! And maybe I’ll do a version 2 of the design some day…