Quote Originally Posted by Don Corleone
You gotta remember Kanamori that the cocktail, or mixed drink, is an American creation. You can get shots & mixed drinks in the UK or continental Europe, but it's rare. Most of those EOP (East of the pond) drink their spirits straight or branched (with a dash of water). The one exception to this would be the G&T (gin and tonic) but for the love of God, unless you want to be dragged out to the street and horsewhipped, you don't want to ask for ice.
But for a G&T you must have ice and a slice of fruit. preferably lime. You shouldn't have ice in a decent malt whisky, but in the rough blended stuff I recommend it. A little coke or ginger as a mixer goes well with yank whiskey. Cocktails are indeed an American invention and should be sought out in more specialist bars rather than pubs, though there are exceptions.

I confess to being a lager or cider drinker rather than a bitter fan (I am a bitter man, but that is a different story) but there are a great many out there that are very tasty. I like HSB, but now that the brewery has been brought out I wonder if it has a future.