Mandarin Monday: Cocktails & Spirits in Chinese

Katie Coy, Managing Editor | Dec 1, 2025 4:30 pm | Add a comment | 21 reads

Mandarin Monday is a regular series where we help you improve your Chinese by detailing fun and practical phrases and characters.

Following our recent posts about beer in Chinese and wine in Chinese, we're now finishing off this boozy series with all your essential vocab for spirits and cocktails.

Spirits and Liquor

First things first, let's take a look at some of the most common spirits you'll find here. 

  • 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

Now, we've got some of the most common mixers to go with your spirit of choice. 

  • 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

Next, we've got some of the most popular cocktails. Just like when we took a look at different beer brands, some cocktails names can be transliterations of the English name, while others are 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

Lastly, here are a few popular spirit brands. Again, 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 chuánzhǎng
  • Jose Cuervo: 何塞-库尔沃 hésāi - kùěrwò
  • Johnnie Walker: 尊尼获加 zhūnnī huòjiā
  • Jameson: 尊美醇 zūnměichún
  • Hennessy: 轩尼诗 xuānnīshī
  • Rémy Martin: 人头马 réntóumǎ
  • Campari: 金巴利 jīnbālì
  • Aperol: 阿佩罗 āpèiluó
  • Baileys: 百利甜酒 bǎilì tiánjiǔ

READ: Mandarin Monday: Essential Words for Wine Lovers

Images: Unsplash