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Whiskey Sour

ClassicShaken5 Min Yield: 1 Cocktail
Whiskey Sour

Bright lemon, warm bourbon, and a foam top like a soft landing. The Whiskey Sour is the friendliest of the classics, and the egg white is what turns a good sour into the one people ask about.

Recipe Card

Ingredients

  • 2oz (60ml) bourbon
  • 0.75oz (22ml) fresh lemon juice
  • 0.75oz (22ml) simple syrup
  • 1 egg white, or aquafaba for a plant based foam
  • Lemon twist or a cherry, for garnish
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Method

  1. Add bourbon, lemon juice, syrup, and egg white to a shaker with no ice. Shake hard for 10 seconds to build the foam.
  2. Add ice and shake again for 12 to 15 seconds until well chilled.
  3. Strain over fresh ice in a rocks glass, or serve straight up in a stemmed glass.
  4. Rest a minute so the foam sets, then garnish.

Tip: The dry shake comes first for a reason. Foam built before the ice goes in stands taller and lasts longer in the glass.

Variations

  • New York Sour. Float half an ounce of dry red wine over the finished drink. It looks dramatic and adds a dark fruit edge.
  • Gold Rush. Swap the simple syrup for honey syrup and skip the egg white. Warm, round, and quietly richer.

Questions

Is the egg white safe?

Use pasteurized egg whites if you have any concern, or aquafaba, the liquid from a can of chickpeas, which foams the same way. And the drink works with no foam at all, it is simply leaner.

Why equal lemon and syrup?

Equal parts keep the bourbon in charge. More lemon turns it sharp, more syrup turns it soft. Start equal and tune from there.