Whiskey Sour

Whiskey Sour is a real classic among cocktails! It belongs to the category of Sour cocktails and contains whiskey, lemon juice, sugar syrup and optionally egg white. A good Whiskey Sour has the perfect balance of sweetness, acidity and the aroma of cask-matured whiskeys. This traditional whiskey cocktail has been popular for centuries and is served in the best bars in the world.

The preparation of a Whisky Sour Cocktail on video

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The 5 most common mistakes in Whisky Sour Cocktail

1. Wrong ratio of sweetness, acidity and whisky

Does your Whiskey Sour taste too sour or too sweet? Or do you have the feeling your drink tastes closed and can't develop properly? This may be because the balance between acidity, sweetness and strength is not quite right. To avoid this common mistake, there is a simple but promising strategy: The 3-2-1 rule. It is used in many cocktails, especially the sours. These include Pisco Sour, Margarita, Sidecar.

The 3-2-1 rule means:

• 3 parts strong
• 2 parts sour
• 1 part sweetness

This rule works best when:

• The spirit drink has an alcoholic strength by volume of approximately 40% vol.
• For the acidity use freshly squeezed lemon juice, no lemon juice from the bottle
• For the sweetness syrup with a sugar to water ratio of 1:1 is used. This syrup is called: "Simple Syrup"

If your ingredients deviate from this and taste, for example, significantly stronger, sourer or sweeter, you should adjust the ratio accordingly.

2. The cocktail not shaken strongly enough

To make a nice head of foam when straining and to combine the ingredients and their flavours well, you need to shake your cocktail really well. The first shake, the dry shake, is the most important step for a good head of foam. Shake really hard for at least 12 seconds to foam the egg whites. In the wet shake, all the ingredients combine and are cooled down. You should also shake vigorously, but not as vigorously as the first shake.

3. Protein in Whisky Sour: too little, too much, too old

With the right amount of eggwhite, your Whisky Sour will be creamy, have an appealing head and round off the taste. If you use too little eggwhite, these effects will not occur. If you use too much eggwhite, the drink will taste fade and not like Whisky Sour. Here are two approximate values you can use for orientation:

• maximum one eggwhite of size M per glass
• At least half an eggwhite of size M per glass

4. Improper quality ingredients in cocktails

The errors described so far can be avoided relatively easily if you have bought the right ingredients. However, if your ingredients are bad, even the 3-2-1 rule or shaking vigorously won't help. You should pay attention to this when buying the ingredients:

• fresh eggs! If the eggs are not really fresh, it can happen that the whole drink gets a sulphurous aftertaste and the foam smells unpleasant. If you can't get fresh eggs, leave them out.
• press lemon juice yourself, ideally from organic lemons! Lemon juice contains many other delicious flavours in addition to the acidity, which are usually no longer present in ready pressed juices from the bottle. The worst are juices made from lemon juice concentrate. With concentrate juices your whiskey drink will unfortunately not be delicious.
• Use high quality whisky! Even if some people think it doesn't matter if you use cheap booze instead of high quality whisky for a cocktail - I can tell you from experience: it does matter! If good bourbon whisky is used is exactly what distinguishes a cheap village disco drink from a world class whiskey sour. And the good thing about it: good Bourbon Whisky doesn't have to be expensive! In my chapter Which Bourbon is suitable for Whiskey Sour? I present some cheap whiskeys that are perfect for a good Bourbon Sour.

5. The wrong ambience for the fine Bourbon drink

A cocktail like the Whiskey Sour is not a drink for the plastic cup. Take your time with this drink and celebrate every step, from preparation to the last sip. Get a nice cocktail glass, such as an Old Fashioned glass or a tumbler glass, and garnish your drink so that it is pleasing to the eye. Put some music on top of it and drink it together with good friends or people you like.If you combine the above steps with the right ambience, then you can enjoy the perfect Whiskey Sour!

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How do I make sugar syrup myself?

Whisky Sour without sugar syrup? That does not have to be! I will show you how to make sugar syrup very simply. A basic distinction is made between:

1. Simple Syrup
2. Rich Simple Syrup
3. Different types of sugar

Simple and proven: Simple syrup with common household sugar

Making sugar syrup yourself is easy. You simply dissolve a certain amount of sugar in water - and the syrup is ready. For Whisky Sour Simple Syrup is often used, which has a sugar to water ratio of 1:1. For 500ml of Simple Sour you take 500ml of water and stir in 500g of sugar. It is quicker if you heat the water beforehand. It should not boil, however, as this causes water to evaporate, which can lead to the ratio no longer being correct. Simple Syrup tastes great in Whisky Sour because it is not too sweet. It should not be stored for too long, as it can start to go mouldy due to the relatively low sugar content.

Sweeter and longer lasting: Rich Simple Sirup

Rich Simple Syrup is sweeter than simple syrup and has a sugar to water ratio of 1:2. This makes it safer to store, as bacteria can hardly multiply due to the sugar. It is a bit thicker than Simple Syrup and is also very suitable for Whisky Sour. However, you have to take care to use less syrup for mixing. If you mix the Whisky Sour with Rich Simple Syrup, you should use one third less syrup than with Simple Syrup. In our recipe this would be 1.3cl Rich Simple Syrup for one serving.

For those who like to experiment: Different types of sugar

Apart from the white sugar commonly used in households, there are of course other types of sugar that differ in taste, appearance and price. In this table you will find an overview of all the information about the different types of sugar:

What can I use instead of a cocktail shaker?

If you don't have a cocktail shaker at home, that's no problem. You can still mix your whisky cocktail using alternatives. All you need is a clean, sealable container with a sufficiently large capacity and a sufficiently large opening. For example, washed-out preserving jars or jam jars, or even fresh-keeping boxes are suitable for this.

Which whisky is suitable for Whisky Sour?

A good Whisky Sour lives from the perfect balance of sweetness, acidity and the aroma of good whisky. The quality of the ingredients plays a central role. Tastes vary, but a bad whisky can be recognized quite quickly. If the whisky tastes sharp, smells like bad vanilla and reminds you of solvents, you should not even try to mix a good Whisky Sour cocktail with it. Most of the cheapest whiskies from discounters are not suitable for this. But it does not have to be the most expensive drop. For about 20-30€ a bottle you can often get good quality whiskies, with which you can get good results. Basically, many whisky types are suitable for Whisky Sour, but the American original is most often prepared with Bourbon.

Bourbon is made from a mash that must consist of at least 51% corn. The remaining 49% can consist of different types of grain. Usually this is barley, rye or corn.

How do I recognize a good Bourbon?

A good Bourbon Whisky is comparatively mild on the palate, soft on the finish and has fine flavours of vanilla, oak, fruit, spices and honey. The taste should be complex but not artificially enhanced.

Here are some examples of whiskies in the lower price range:

Maker's Mark, Four Roses or Knob Creek

The additional information for Bourbon Whisky is of course also important. The addition Straight means that the whisky has been aged for at least two years in new American oak casks. Kentucky Straight Bourbon or Kentucky Bourbon must have been distilled in Kentucky. Tennessee straight whiskey or Tennessee whiskey must have been distilled in Tennessee.

Whisky Sour without egg white or with egg white?

Some who hear about a cocktail with raw protein for the first time are sceptical at first. You can't blame them, because salmonella can actually multiply in raw eggs and can lead to a salmonella infection when consumed. Therefore, it is very important: Only use eggs that are as fresh as possible and stored in a cool place! Then the least can happen. If you still have concerns, you should prepare the Whisky Sour with the recipe without protein. Personally, I have never had any problems with salmonella from the many Whisky Sours I have drunk so far.

If you use super fresh eggs, the egg white will give you a rounder taste and combines the flavours of the other ingredients nicely. In addition, shaking with egg white gives a nice head of foam, which enhances the cocktail visually. I personally like the Whisky Sour with egg white best.

How do I mix a Whisky Sour vegan?

As a vegan alternative to protein, water from a can of chickpeas is suitable. This water is also called Aquafaba. Simply replace the protein from my recipe with 2cl of water from a can of chickpeas and process it in exactly the same way as the protein.

In the water there are similar proteins as in the egg white, which binds the cocktail and creates a beautiful foam crown.

If you don't want to use canned chickpea water, you can also buy bottled Aquafaba. Fee Foam you can get for example in this shop.

As an alternative to fresh eggs, egg white powder is also suitable. This has a longer shelf life and can be easily mixed with water if required. One teaspoon corresponds to about half an egg white. When mixing, it is best to put the powder in the shaker last so that it mixes well with the other ingredients.

Which glass do I use to serve the Whisky Sour?

Whisky Sour is most often served in a tumbler glass or in a beautifully decorated Old Fashioned glass. Very high quality are glasses made of lead crystal or cut lead glass. However, classic cocktail glasses with a long sems are also suitable.

The most important aspect in choosing the right glass is, in my opinion, that the glass matches the ambience in which you drink your Whisky Sour. Drinking from the right glass makes a good Whisky Sour even more fun.

You can find a selection of different glasses on the net at important shops.

How do I decorate a Whisky Sour?

To garnish your cocktail like a good bartender, you can cut orange slices and stick them on the edge of the glass or put a cocktail cherry (also called Maraschino cherry) on top of the whitecap. For an extra flavour and a nice look you can also put one or two splashes of Angostura Bitter on the head.

How many Whisky Sours can I drink?

Prof. Dr. Helmut Seitz and Prof. Dr. Gerhard Bühringer from the German Head Office for Addiction Issues make recommendations regarding the limits for the consumption of alcoholic beverages:

"Every person has an individually different risk for alcohol-related disorders, due to the interaction of their genetic make-up and their learning experiences. (…). The following values apply to healthy people without genetic or acquired health problems: The low-risk threshold dose in dealing with alcohol in healthy people without additional genetic or acquired risk is man at 24g alcohol per day and in women at 12g alcohol per day. (…). At this alcohol dose, at least 2 alcohol-free days per week should be observed.

You can also find more information on the information portals SAMHSA and NCBI

If you look at our nutritional table, we can see that one Whisky Sour (225g) contains about 18.7g alcohol. As a man you can drink a Whisky Sour at the end of the day with low risk if you don't drink alcohol for two days a week. Women are accordingly allowed to drink a small Whisky Sour (145g) at the end of the day. For our recipe this simply means: take a third less of everything.

What is the difference between Whisky Sour and Whiskey Sour?

Whisky Sour also appears in the spelling Whiskey Sour. Some also spell it Whiskysour or Whiskeysour. But which spelling is the right one? It depends on the direction you look from. If we look in the largest American online dictionary the spelling "Whiskey" is suggested. If you look in Cambridge Dictionary, the spelling "Whisky" is suggested. Since Whiskey Sour originally became popular in the American area, one could say that the spelling with the extra letter is correct. Especially if you prepare the Whiskey Cocktail with Straight Bourbon Whiskey.

When people in Europe talk about whisky, they often mean Scotch whisky. And it is written like this: whisky.

But of course there are exceptions here too. The American whiskey producer Maker's Mark uses the spelling without an e, although this is straight bourbon whiskey.

In the end it doesn't matter how you write it. What is meant, of course, is one thing: The tastiest cocktail with whisk(e)y on this earth!

On the following diagram you can see which of the two terms in Germany has been searched more frequently on Google in the last twelve months.

Where can I buy the ingredients for Whisky Sour?

You can get most of the ingredients in the supermarket of your choice. Make sure to buy organic lemons and eggs. You can either buy sugar syrup as ready-made bar syrup or, even better, make it yourself with sugar and water. Ice cubes are available as crushed ice or as whole ice cubes (usually hollow cone ice cubes). Best here are whole ice cubes that are not hollow.

Good Straight Bourbon Whisky is more difficult to find in the supermarket. Whisky's that you often find there are for example Maker's Mark, Four Roses or Knob Creek.

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Interesting facts about Whisky Sour

The history of Whisky Sours

The cocktail variant "Sour" was mentioned in writing in 1862 in the book "Bar Tender's Guide by Jerry Thomas.

The idea of mixing lemon, sugar and spirits was born much earlier, on board the many ships that were trading at that time. On these ships there was often a shortage of water and the sailors suffered from the dangerous disease scurvy due to vitamin C deficiency. Lemons and spirits could be kept even at sea and the vitamin C in the lemon prevented the spread of scurvy. Whenever the sailors went ashore, this recipe spread and sours with rum or brandy became the standard of any bar that was worth its salt.

The Whisky Sour was first mentioned in January 1870 in the US American daily newspaper "The Waukesha Plaindealer".

The popularity of Whisky Sour continued to grow and it quickly became a classic that no bar could do without. 1879 the great American daily newspaper "The Atlanta Daily Constitution" wrote: "When American meets American, then comes the Whiskey Sour“.

Nutrients of Whisky Sour

How many kcal does a Whisky Sour have? You can find out here. One serving (225g) contains:

water	169	g
Energy	277	kcal
Fat	0,18	g
of total fatty acids	0,014	g
carbohydrates	36,2	g
of which sugar	36,2	g
protein	0,18	g
salt	0,17	g
alcohol content Whisky Sour	18,7	g

Trace elements and vitamins in Whisky Sour:

calcium, Ca	4,5	mg
iron, Fe	0,202	mg
Magnesium, Mg	2,25	mg
phosphorus, P	13,5	mg
potassium, K	49,5	mg
Zinc, Zn	0,135	mg
copper, Cu	0,011	mg
Selenium, Se	0,675	µg
Vitamin C	4,5	mg
Thiamine	0,025	mg
Riboflavin	0,02	mg
Niacin	0,0007	mg
Choline	1,58	mg

Source of the data is the U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

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What other of Sour Cocktails are there?

The basic recipe of three ingredients, spirit, lemon juice and sugar syrup, can be found in a wide variety of cocktails. Some of them still count as classics in cocktail history and are still popularly served and drunk. Cocktails based on this recipe are divided into three categories: Sour, Fizz and Collins.

Sours are basically the original form of this type of cocktail. In addition to the classic whiskey sour, there are variants such as the Pisco Sour with "Pisco" brandy from Peru, Amaretto Sour, or Margarita.

Fizzes differ from sours because they are additionally filled with soda water. The best-known fizzes are the Gin Fizz or the Ramos Gin Fizz. It is not always possible to distinguish between Fizzes and Collins. The biggest difference is not in the ingredients, but in the preparation. While the Fizz is built in the serving glass, the Collins is built in the shaker and then strained into the serving glass.

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Cocktail cherry, Maraschino cherry or cherry garnish for the Whiskey Sour?

The cocktail cherry can be found as a garnish in many cocktails and so, of course, in the whiskey sour. For most people, it is one of those things that they have seen many times but don't actually know anything about. Here are a few facts about the cocktail cherry:

• The cocktail cherry is also called the Maraschino cherry. This name comes from a type of sour cherry that originated in Croatia, the Maraska cherries. These used to be preserved in Maraschino liqueur.
• Nowadays, different types of cherries are used and first bleached by a brine with salt, sulphur dioxide and calcium chloride to give them their usual colour with food colouring. To preserve them, they are pickled in malt sugar. Flavourings are also added.

If you want to find out even more information about the cocktail cherry, I can recommend this article on the maraschino cherry from the New York Times. By the way, I recommend you try your whiskey sour next time with real maraschino cherries.

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Whisky News

Tweets by Whisky_Magazine

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Whisky networks: how whisk(e)ys can be scientifically distinguished

Distinguishing Scotch from American whisky just by looking at the liquid and without a taste test is quite difficult. The two different types of whisky look pretty much the same despite different production processes.

But in 2019, researchers at the University of Lousville in the US found a way to tell the whiskies apart in a study. The researchers allowed drops of different types of whiskey to dry down in a controlled manner and observed what residues formed.

The researchers found that American whiskies form network-like residues. Scottish ones, on the other hand, do not form any residue and can thus be clearly distinguished. In addition, the residues also allow statements to be made about the age, quality and origin of the whiskey.

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5 simple Whiskey Sour variations

The traditional Whisky Sour Mix is made with Bourbon, but other whisky types are also perfect for our favourite whisky cocktail! Here I present some recipe ideas:

• Whisky Sour with Single Malt Scotch Whisky
• Whisky Sour with Rye
• Whisky Sour with Ginger Ale
• Whisky Sour orange juice Slush with the Thermomix

Whisky Sour with Single Malt Scotch Whisky

Scotch single malt whisky is often a little more complex in taste than bourbon and can taste peaty and smoky. Especially whisky distilled on the Islay Islands has strong smoky aromas. In Whisky Sour peaty whisky prolongs the finish and offers connoisseurs an exciting drinking experience. Because of the stronger aroma of the whisky I have adapted the recipe a little bit. Have fun with the recipe for the Islay Whisky Cocktail:

Whisky Sour with Rye

Rye whisky differs from Bourbon in its production and taste. On the one hand, the mash from which the spirit is produced must consist of 51% rye (for Bourbon it is 51% corn). On the other hand, rye tastes a little spicier and heartier than bourbon. This of course also affects the Whisky Sour. This tastes great and is definitely worth a try!

Whisky Sour with Ginger Ale

A little bit similar to the also very delicious Cocktail Moscow Mule is this variant. Ginger Ale and whisky shake hands and melt into a drink that is a little sweeter and a little weaker in alcohol content than the previously presented variants. Just the right thing for a hot summer day, it's worth trying!

Whisky Sour orange juice Slush with the Thermomix

You have a Thermomix at home and would like to know how it can help you in your whisky sour mixing? I've put together a few ideas here to help you make your Thermomix the best bartender. Especially with larger quantities you can save a lot of time and effort.

Imagine the following situation: You are throwing a barbecue party in summer and want to offer your guests a refreshing drink. Your guests love Whisky Sour, but it takes too much time to mix five of them. For exactly such situations I have thought of the Whisky Sour Slush recipe. The Thermomix does most of the work.

Whisky Sour to take away

Sometimes you have to be quick or you don't have access to a kitchen or bar utensils. For example, when camping, at a festival, on the beach or simply when you're out and about. This poses a problem for whiskey sour fans: how do you mix a whiskey sour in this situation?

But there are now suitable solutions and alternatives. I'd like to introduce you to a few here:

• Insider Tip: The Perfect Whisky Sour To Go Without Powder
• Whisky Sour Powder - Super fast and flexible
• Whisky Sour ready out of the bag
• Whisky Sour Ice

Insider tip: The perfect whisky sour for camping, camping, outdoor, festival and on the road

You're going camping or to a festival with friends and want to surprise them with a nice whisky drink, but don't feel like carrying all your bar utensils with you? Then I have a secret tip for you. With this Whisky Sour Survival Kit, you don't have to give up your favourite drink anywhere.

Whisky Sour Powder - Super fast and flexible

Yes, you read that right. Whisky Sour Instant Powder really does exist. All you need to make a whisky sour is whisky, powder and water.

The whisky powder is not easy to find, but is available in some international shops.

The ingredients are mixed and - if available - poured into a glass with ice.

Whisky Sour ready out of the bag

If you don't have the possibility to mix ingredients, e.g. because you don't have a sealable container at hand, that's no problem. The Italian company NIO offers ready-mixed whisky sours out of the bag on their website. Apparently the cocktail contains Bulleit Bourbon Whisky. This is highly recommended, at least for freshly mixed whiskey sours. In any case, the Whisky Sour for your jacket pocket is certainly worth a try.

Whisky Sour Icecream

For hot summer days in the park or at the beach, there is a fun product from Skadi frozen Cocktails. Ready-mixed cocktails packed in small bags to tear open. They look like the little water ice cones I used to eat as a child. And you can also put Skadi's cones in the freezer and freeze them. The result is whisky sour flavoured water ice. You can eat this right away or take it to the beach. At least the whisky sour will keep cool for a while.

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For allergy sufferers: chicken egg alternatives in the whisky sour

Some people cannot eat eggs because they have a protein allergy and are therefore allergic to certain proteins in the egg white or yolk. If you need more information on allergies, check out the website of the American Allergy and Asthma Federation.

The treatment for an egg allergy is often a change in diet that completely avoids eating eggs. In that case, you should check out our vegan alternative. However, some people can tolerate eggs under certain circumstances. The body's immune response is only ever directed against one of the proteins contained in the egg. Since some of the proteins are not heat resistant, it happens that hard-boiled or double-fried eggs are tolerated after all. However, this alternative is out of the question for mixing a whisky sour with a chicken egg allergy, because the egg must be processed raw.

Happily, there are other alternatives that can be used to make a whisky sour with a nice head without using a chicken egg: Quail eggs, goose eggs or duck eggs. At this point, however, I would like to point out one more thing. Although for some people who are allergic to chicken eggs, quail eggs can be a good alternative, in each individual case, medical diagnostics must rule out the possibility of cross-allergies. So if you have an allergy, check with your doctor first to see if you can use quail eggs or other eggs.

When preparing quail eggs, check with your doctor first.

When making whisky sours with quail egg whites, there are two things to watch out for: the amount of quail eggs must be adjusted accordingly and the yolk must be cleanly separated from the white.

This table shows you approximately how many quail, duck or goose eggs you can use as a substitute for an M-sized chicken egg:

Separating quail eggs is a little more complicated than separating chicken eggs. First, you need to open the quail egg cleanly. The best way to do this is with quail shell cutter. If you don't have a quail shell cutter, you should try to saw open the shell with a serrated knife. Of course, be careful not to cut your finger!

Then you can separate the quail egg in a similar way to a chicken egg and put the quail egg white into a container. Alternatively, you can use a silicone egg separator.

Finally, you can use the egg whites to make your whisky sour, following the instructions in the table above. Three to four quail eggs are usually enough to get a decent head.

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Whisky Sour Organic, sustainable, alcohol-free?

Organic Whisky Sour

Those who care about ecological nutrition do not have to do without it when mixing whisky sour. All ingredients needed to prepare a Whisky Sour are also available in organic quality:

• Organic lemons are available in most supermarkets
• Organic sugar is available in organic stores either as whole cane sugar or as organic beet sugar
• Organic whisky can be found in relevant online stores.

Sustainable straws

From 2021 plastic straws are prohibited in the EU. This is a good thing, because there are much more sustainable alternatives:

• Glass straws are pleasant to the touch and can be reused. They can also be easily cleaned in the dishwasher.
• Metal straws can also be reused and cleaned in the dishwasher.
• Bamboo straws can be reused, but should be cleaned by hand.
• Compostable straws are intended for single use, but are more sustainable than plastic straws because they are completely biodegradable

Is Whisky Sour also available non-alcoholic? Yes!

For those who want to do without alcohol, but still want to enjoy a fine drink, there is also a solution! Most types of spirits, including whisky, are now also available in non-alcoholic versions. You probably won't find these variants in your next supermarket. But you can order them from the relevant online alcohol-free stores.

You can then use the alcohol-free whisky as described in the recipe above. Note, however, that non-alcoholic whisky is often a little sweeter than whisky with alcohol. Accordingly, you should use less sugar syrup.

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Whisky Sour Highlights

Where to get the most expensive whisky Sour?

Whisky can be really expensive. Only in October 2019 the record for the most expensive bottle of whisky was broken. At an auction of the auction house Sotheby's, about 1.6 million Euro was paid for a bottle of Macallan from 1926. A Whisky Sour with our recipe would cost about 138.000€ with this whisky!

Whisky Sour Records

The oldest whisky owned by a human is Baker's Pure Rye Whisky, which was distilled in 1847. Source: Guinness World Records.

The oldest Bourbon distillery is called Maker's Mark and is located in Loretto, Kentucky, USA It exists since 1805 and still distils good Bourbon Whisky, which I can recommend as a great beginner Whisky for Whisky Sour. Source: Guinness World Records.

Famous (Movie) quotes about Whisky Sour

These quotes will put a smile on any whisky sour lover's face:

"Miss Morris, I'm perfectly capable of fixing my own breakfast. As a matter of fact, I had a peanut butter sandwich and two whiskey sours." - in The Seven Year Itch (1955)

„You had to have eight f*cking Whiskey Sours, I Couldn’t Stop at f*cking three or four... I had to have eight!” - Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)

“Too much of anything is bad, but too much good whiskey is barely enough.” – Mark Twain

“Always carry a flagon of whisky in case of snakebite, and furthermore, always carry a small snake.” – W.C. Fields

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About me

My name is Georg Badden. I love cocktails - especially Whisky Sour. Over the years I have tasted Whisky Sour in countless variations, from the pub around the corner to the award-winning bar. I have gained a lot of knowledge and experience. For example, that a really good Whisky Sour doesn't have to be expensive!

Mixing the perfect whisky sour is an art. When the few ingredients are of good quality and their fine aromas are in just the right proportion, a truly special drink is created.

On this page I would like to share my experiences and my passion with you and encourage you to mix yourself. Try it out, it's worth it!

Have fun mixing!

Cheers, Georg