The whiskey sour is a stone-cold classic. The mix of bourbon, lemon, sugar, and egg white is a mighty elixir that feels a little old school and Donny Draper-ish while still being amazingly fresh.
With summer heatwaves hitting much of the country, now feels like the ideal time to shake up some whiskey sours to fight the heat. This velvety smooth drink is 100 percent a refresher that’ll take the edge off your day and cool down that scorching summer sun.
Let’s get shaking!
Whiskey Sour
Ingredients:
- 2-oz. bourbon
- 1-oz. fresh lemon juice
- 0.5-oz. simple syrup
- 1 egg white
- 4 dashes Angostura Bitters
- Ice
I’d argue that you don’t want a ridiculous bourbon for this drink. You need a solid mixer that marries well with the lemonade aspects of the drink. I like mixing with Legent Bourbon at the moment, so I’m going with that. There’s a nice, spicy backbone with a touch of berries and citrus that work well in this cocktail.
As for the rest, you really need to get a very fresh egg and nice lemons. That’s about it!
What You’ll Need:
- Small rocks glass or Nick and Nora
- Cocktail shaker
- Cocktail strainer
- Mesh strainer
- Juicer
- Pairing knife
Method:
- Pre-chill your glass.
- Add the bourbon, simple syrup, lemon juice, and egg white to a shaker. Shake for about 30 seconds without ice.
- Add ice to the shaker and shake for an additional ten to 15 seconds.
- Fetch your glass from the freezer and pour the whiskey sour through the mesh strainer into the glass.
- Let the whiskey sour rest for about a minute to let the froth set on the glass.
- Dash the bitters across the top of the drink.
- Serve.
Bottom Line:
As the sage once said, this is “fresher than wet paint.”
Word up — this is just really refreshing, light, velvety, and full of lemony goodness. The bourbon comes through nicely, but the real star of the show is the lemon and egg white, creating that soft texture with big citrus notes and an almost lemon meringue vibe.
While this is a little labor-intensive, it’s worth the double shake to make it really froth up and keep that silky-smooth body. It’s also very crushable. I could drink a few of these to let the week slip away and not have a worry in the world. In fact, I think I just might.
Cheers!