Cocktails where sweetness is balanced with sour.

Whiskey Sour

2 oz Whiskey (Blended, Bourbon, or Rye)
1 oz Lemon juice
1⁄2 oz Simple syrup
1 Egg white (optional)
1 Maraschino cherry (as garnish)
1 sli Orange (wheel, as garnish)
Instructions

Shake, strain, rock, low-ball. Garnish. If using the optional egg white, shake the ingredients first without ice, then shake again with ice.

Notes

An excellent drink for the drinker exploring the world beyond sweeter drinks.

YieldsDrink
Year
1872
Authenticity
Unknown
Creator
Elliot Stubb, Peru, alleged.
Source reference

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whiskey_sour

Quickstart
Lemon, lime and sours
Curator rating
4 stars
Average rating
4.5 stars
(37 ratings)
From other users
  • Try making a basic again with 1oz lemon, like Dan Sabo's, which is listed below.
  • Reverse shake with one ice cube to prevent egg white leakage (air expansion)
  • Prefer 3/4 oz lemon juice and 1/2 oz simple syrup, dash orange bitters — ★★★★
  • For a less tart version, use 3/4 oz lemon, 3/4-1 oz simple. 1/4 oz of egg white should be enough.
Similar cocktails
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  • Ex-Pat — Bourbon, Bitters, Lime juice, Simple syrup, Mint
  • (Twice) Improved Whiskey Sour — Rye, Maraschino Liqueur, Bitters, Honey syrup, Lemon juice, Lime juice, Egg white, Lemon peel
  • Basil Sour — Bourbon, Lemon juice, Simple syrup, Basil
  • Lone Wolf — Bourbon, Averna, Cardamom tincture, Lemon juice, Gomme syrup

It seems that Old Waldorf Astoria Bar Book called for serving some sours at room temperature.  The Pequod Sour, which adds mint to an egg-less whiskey sour is pretty tasty.

Margarita

2 oz Tequila
1 oz Triple sec, Cointreau
1 oz Lime juice
Instructions

Shake, strain, straight-up, cocktail glass, optionally half-rimmed with salt.

YieldsDrink
Authenticity
Unknown
Quickstart
Lemon, lime and sours
Curator rating
4 stars
Average rating
4.5 stars
(47 ratings)
From other users
  • Death & Co book's recipe is almost a perfect cocktail. 2 tequila, 1 lime, 0.75 Contreau; 0.25 agave syrup (can be skipped). Half salted rim (of course) over a big ice cube.
  • 3/4 Cointreau 1/4 agave death and Co specs, strain over rock
  • I like decreasing the sweetener to 3/4 and sometimes swapping in agave syrup.
  • # Gingerbread 1 oz Blanco tequila 1⁄2 oz Crème de Banane 1⁄2 oz Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile Liqueur 1⁄2 oz Gingerbread syrup 3⁄4 oz Lime juice 2 ds Bitters, Angostura
  • Beer & brandy
  • 2 oz tequila, 3/4 oz lemon/lime juice mix (or all lime), 3/4oz Cointreau, 1/4 oz agave syrup, on the rocks.
  • 3/19/18: Very good with 2 oz Olmeca Altos blanco, 3/4 oz lime, 1/2 oz PF dry curaçao, and 1/4 oz 2:1 simple syrup. Probably better with 1/2 oz lime, 1/4 oz lemon.
  • split sweet between agave & Cointreau?
  • ◾Consider muddling a jalepeno or other hot pepper slice. May need to add a bit of some sort of citrus juice to calm the hot pepper. Peng uses 3:2:1 Tequilla, Lime, Cointreau, a very tart version.
  • Current favorite: 2 tequila, 1 lime, 2/3 orange liqueur, 1/3 agave
Similar cocktails
  • Smokey the Blackberry — Tequila, Orange liqueur, Lime juice, Agave syrup, Sage, Blackberry
  • Not Strawberry Margarita — Tequila, Triple sec, Campari, Lime juice
  • Mark's Margarita — Tequila, Triple sec, Lime juice, Simple syrup
  • Beachcomber — Light rum, Orange liqueur, Maraschino Liqueur, Lime juice, Simple syrup
  • Mama Marlowe — Light rum, Maraschino Liqueur, Grapefruit bitters, Lime juice, Orange juice, Simple syrup

I like 2 oz Siete Leguas Blanco (or Tequila Ocho), 1 oz lime, 3/4 Cointreau - I tend to be a minimalist... I want to taste the tequila, and it should be tart. I strongly prefer neutral-spirit based orange liqueurs over brandy based ones.

Norm commented on 10/11/2014:

My preferred recipe
2.0 oz Silver/blanco tequila (OR 1.5 oz tequila and 0.5 oz mezcal for a smokey variant)
1.0 oz Citrus juice, freshly squeezed (1 ounce lime juice OR half ounce each of lime juice and lemon juice)
0.75 oz Triple Sec (Cointreau, Pierre Ferrard Dry Curacao, or Creole Shrub)
0.25 oz Agave syrup (If omitting the agave syrup, bump up the triple sec to a full ounce)
Half salted rim

Jo's Margarita

Tequila Blanco - 2 oz
lime and lemon - 1 oz
Orange liqueur (Cointreu works) - 1 oz
Mezcal (spash)
mix with ice
strain

FWIW Christine Wiseman’s recipe unanimously won the Punch blind tasting this year:

  • 2 oz Cascahuín blanco 
  • 1 oz lime juice 
  • 1/2 oz Cointreau 

  • 1/2 oz 1:1 agave syrup

    Half salt rim and lime garnish. 

Caipirinha

3 oz Cachaça
2 t Sugar
4 wdg Lime (1/2 lime)
Instructions

Squeeze lime wedges into low-ball glass and muddle with sugar until dissolved. Add cachaça. Stir.

Notes

Brazils most famous drink. Time-savier: use 1/2 oz lime juice and 1/2 oz simple syrup. For some, 2 oz of of cachaça is sufficient.

YieldsDrink
Authenticity
Unknown
Source reference

Gary Regan, The Joy of Mixology

Quickstart
Lemon, lime and sours
Curator rating
Not yet rated
Average rating
4.5 stars
(21 ratings)
From other users
  • Went with lime juice and simple sugar option.
  • Refreshing and boozy. I lived in Brazil for 3yrs. Cut 1/2 - 1 lime into pieces & put 2 T sugar in a bottom of rocks glass, muddle, add ice & at least 3oz cachaca - cheap stuff ok. Enjoy! Never liked simple w/ this drink.
  • I like this: 2 oz cachaca; 3/4 of a lime; 3/4 oz simple; 1 cube. Muddle, shake with cracked ice, strain to chilled DOF with cracked ice.
  • Use 2 oz Cachaça
Similar cocktails
  • Michikopirinha — Cachaça, Ancho Reyes chile liqueur, Bitters, Brown sugar, Lime, Blood orange
  • Watermelon Batida — Cachaça, Watermelon, Lime juice, Simple syrup, Mint
  • Kashmiri Caipirinha — Cachaça, Simple syrup, Lime juice, Tamarind, Turmeric, Chili pepper
  • Casa Samba — Cachaça, Bénédictine, Peychaud's Bitters, Absinthe, Sugar, Lime, Salt Solution
  • Libélula — Cachaça, Elderflower liqueur, Maraschino Liqueur, Lime juice, Simple syrup

Refreshing and boozy. I lived in Brazil for 3yrs. Cut 1/2 - 1 lime into pieces & put 2 T sugar in a bottom of rocks glass, muddle, add ice & at least 3oz cachaca - cheap stuff ok. Enjoy! Never liked simple w/ this drink.

Pisco Sour

2 oz Pisco
1 oz Lime juice (or lemon)
1⁄2 oz Simple syrup
1⁄2 oz Egg white
4 dr Bitters, Angostura (as garnish)
Instructions

Shake without ice, then add ice and shake again until frothy. Strain into chilled flute. Garnish with drops of bitters.

Notes

Both Chile and Peru claim this as their drink. The South American "Limon" is closer to the North American lime.

Picture of Pisco Sour
2007 Creative Commons, Dtarazona, Wikipedia
YieldsDrink
Year
1920
Authenticity
Unknown
Creator
Disputed
Source reference

Gary Regan, The Joy of Mixology. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pisco_sour

Quickstart
Lemon, lime and sours
Curator rating
Not yet rated
Average rating
4.5 stars
(23 ratings)
From other users
  • 3/4 lime, 1/2 rich demerara, Amargo Chuncho bitters (apply with dropper, swirl with straw) — ★★★★★
  • Classic for a reason.
  • Per comments, went a little fat with the syrup.
  • Spring Break
  • Increase syrup a bit
  • It has been suggested that I should make this with a teaspoon of superfine raw sugar in place of the simple syrup, and a meyer lemon or a key lime. It sounds interesting. — ★★★
  • Can increase simple to 3/4 or 1 oz for those with sweeter taste
Similar cocktails
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  • Nutty Aztec — Tequila, Vodka, Triple sec, Aztec Chocolate bitters, Lime juice, Aquafaba
  • St. John's Santa Fe — Blanco tequila, Añejo tequila, Lime juice, Agave syrup, Cucumber, Cilantro, Green Tabasco
  • Mexican Razor Blade — Tequila, Lime juice, Simple syrup, Cucumber, Cayenne pepper

in Peru they always add a dash of cinnamon after pouring--it really brings out the spicier notes in the Pisco

I made my inaugural batch tonight with a bit more simple syrup (nearly 1 oz) & full egg white (different recipe). This was a little to the sweet side, so next time I will back off to 3/4 oz of 1:1 simple syrup. The key to this drink was the Amargo Chuncho (not Angostura). I just received it today, and when I wafted its mildly floral/citrus blossom I recognized it would be a better topping on the egg white foam than Angostura. I wanted a little of this in the liquid too, so I put ~4 drops in the mixing glass for a very pleasing (5 star) result. My wife is a fan of some other Pisco drinks and approved.

I don't know if Chuncho bitters were in the originals as some claim, but as a Peruvian cocktail using locally sourced Peruvian limon and Pisco, it is logical that Peruvian bitters would have been used in early versions. In this drink, the very small amount of bitters add a great deal to the aroma, so I suggest listing Amargo Chuncho as recommended or giving it equal weight as a choice for the bitters.

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