Sour Shelly, Citrus, Shakin’ Mother Jelly. ZAP!
Sours encompass almost all cocktails that contain citrus and are shaken. At its core, a classical sour is defined by lemon. If some uses the phrase “<insert spirit here> Sour,” they are referring to a sweetened lemon preparation.
Sours are very simple, very refreshing, and can contain any spirit. Sours are all about balancing on the palate and creating harmony between the cutting lively nature of acid and the full, luxe character of sugar. For a more in-depth examination of how to understand balance of sours refer to EP. 1 Balance.
Sours have a wonderful option of adding egg white to produce a very frothy, fluffy drink. Do not be fooled, egg whites do not define a sour as some would argue. It is simply a textural preference. A sour without egg white is equally as correct as one with. Never assume that adding egg white makes a default sour. Always ask the guest what they prefer.
Classic Sour
1.5 – 2oz Spirit of Choice
.75oz Lemon
.75oz Simple (1:1)
*1 egg white -optional
**Garnish optional, but a cherry + lemon flag is traditional
Shake serve on the rocks.
Mechanical Parts of Sours
1.5-2oz Base (anything, spirit, wine, fortifies wine, cordial, bitters, the sky is the limit)
.75oz Acid
.75oz sweet
(NOTE: use your handy dandy juice chart featured below. The amount of acid & sweet will change based on the type of juice being used)
If egg white, shake with 2oz of crushed ice, shake until the tin goes quiet, then keep shaking for a minute for to set the foam. Pour into a prechilled rocks glass and add a few rocks. If needed to that the froth puffs up nicely above the rim of the glass. When making egg white drinks you are essentially creating a merengue in your tin, shake like you mean it (from the tip of your toes to the tip of your nose) to incorporate as much air as possible to create exceptional fluff.
As stated above, a sour at default settings is defined by lemon juice. However, technically any drink with citrus is a kind of sour. When the type of acid is changed, the amount of sweet changes too, altering the mechanical parts of the sour. It can become a bit overly complicated, so I made a Handy Dandy Juice Chart to help you learn proper juice ratios, so all your sour riffs will be maximum tastius.
Famous Sours
(Holy sour nerds there’s so many. So here’s just a few.)
Whiskey Sour - The O.G.
Collins- A sour topped with soda
Old Maid- A sour with muddled cucumber and mint
Fitzgerald- A gin sour with bitters
Fizz- A sour with egg white and soda for MAXIMUM FLUFF
Corpse Reviver 2- An egalitarian sour with gin, vermouth, Cointreau, lemon, and a bit of absinthe
Ward 8 – Whiskey sour with OJ and Grenadine
French 75 – Gin sour topped with sparkling wine
A Smash – Sour made with muddled lemon and mint
Paloma- Grapefruit and lime Collins
Blinker- Grapefruit and raspberry whiskey sour
Brown Derby – A grapefruit whiskey sour
Scofflaw- Whiskey sour with grenadine, vermouth, and orange bitters
Satan’s Whisker’s -A gin sour with orange liquor, sweet/dry vermouth, OJ, and orange bitters
Margarita- Tequila sour with lime and orange liquor
Mai Tai – Rum sour with lime, orange liquor, and orgeat (almond syrup)
Naked and famous- Modern classic with mezcal, nonino, aperol, and lemon
Trinidad Sour- Modern classic with Angostura Bitters, rye, lemon, and orgeat
Bees Knees – Gin sour with honey
Gold Rush- Whiskey sour with honey
Josephine Baker - Tangerine Peel infused Vodka - Poppy Liquor- Tangerine - Honey - Burlesque Bitters
Sours are the most diverse of all cocktail styles. Use your favorite seasonal fruits as inspiration and riff from there. The Josephine Baker, pictured above, is a refreshing sour inspired by the badassery of Dancer/Singer/Actress/Activist/Mothe F*ckn’ WWII double agent Jospehine Baker and one of my favorite seasonal citrus’, tangerine. Tangerine has an lively orange/limey flavor. That acid was paired with floral poppy liquor and honey for balance then shaken with a strong base of vodka and a few dashes of burlesque bitters. Resulting in a vibrant, exotic, and sultry spring sour.
Just remember: Base + Acid + Sugar (and sometimes egg) = *SOUR*
The possibilities are endless. May you sours be shaken, delicious, and achieve (in a Schwarznenegger voice) MAAXIMUM FLUUUFF. Cheers! <3 J