Cocktail family
The Sour family
A sour is spirit, fresh citrus and something sweet, shaken hard with ice. Egg white is optional and gives the silky foam. Once you know the ratio you know dozens of drinks, because the Daiquiri, the Margarita and the Sidecar are all sours under other names.
13 recipes
Whiskey SourTart, silky and perfectly balanced: bourbon, lemon and a lid of creamy foam.The template: bourbon, lemon and sugar, with or without the foam.
Pisco SourA creamy, tart Peruvian classic with a silky egg-white foam and fragrant drops of bitters on top.Peru’s national drink, with bitters dotted on the foam.
Amaretto SourA creamy, tart sour where amaretto’s almond sweetness meets bourbon’s bite beneath a silky egg-white foam.Almond liqueur with a splash of bourbon to keep it from cloying.
New York SourA bourbon sour with a layer of dry red wine on top: tart, full-bodied and beautifully layered in the glass.A whiskey sour with a float of dry red wine.
Gin SourA silky classic with biting lemon, round sweetness and an egg-white foam that settles like velvet.The gin version, bright and clean.
DaiquiriRum, lime and syrup in perfect balance: cold, clear and astonishingly simple.Rum, lime and sugar: the sour at its simplest.
MargaritaA classic Margarita of tequila, orange liqueur and freshly squeezed lime: crisp, tart and perfectly balanced.Tequila, lime and orange liqueur, a sour with a salted rim.
SidecarThe classic Sidecar of cognac, orange liqueur and fresh lemon, finely balanced between sweet and sour.Cognac, orange liqueur and lemon, a sour from between the wars.
White LadyA classic gin sour with fresh lemon, sweetness from orange liqueur and a silky egg-white foam.Gin in the Sidecar’s place.
Clover ClubA creamy, pink classic of gin, raspberry and lemon under a silky egg-white foam.Gin, lemon and raspberry, with the classic foam.
Gold RushA modern classic of bourbon, honey and freshly squeezed lemon: warm, tart and perfectly balanced.Bourbon, lemon and honey: a modern sour with a short list.
PenicillinA smoky, tart and gently sweet whisky sour with the bite of ginger and the softness of honey.Scotch, lemon, honey and ginger, with a smoky float.
Trinidad SourA bold sour with Angostura bitters as the main ingredient, balanced by nutty orgeat, fresh lemon and a little rye.Angostura as the base spirit: the family’s boldest member.