Whiskey Sour（ウイスキー・サワー）
Bourbon, lemon, sugar — the template every sour descends from.
01Recipe
Recommended recipe
House spec — an editorial spec drawing on the sourced versions below.
| Ingredient | Measure |
|---|---|
| Bourbon whiskey | 45 ml |
| Fresh lemon juice | 25 ml |
| Sugar syrup (2:1) | 20 ml |
| Egg whiteoptional | 15 ml |
| Angostura bittersoptional | 1 dash |
Total volume (pre-dilution)
3 : 1.7 : 1.3 : 1
- 01
Dry-shake (no ice) if using egg white, then add ice and shake hard.
- 02
Strain into a chilled glass.
- 03
Dot bitters on the foam; garnish with lemon and cherry.
Garnish — Lemon wheel · cocktail cherry
02Taste profile
- Sweetness
- 58Moderate
- Sourness*
- 90Intense
- Bitterness
- 15Faint
- Fruitiness
- 40Moderate
- Herbal*
- 10Faint
- Alcohol
- 45Moderate
- Crisp
- 68Strong
Independent editorial scores, 0–100. *Estimated from the ingredient list — a profile sketch, not a verdict.
03History
Sours sailed with the merchant navy — sailors mixed spirits with citrus against scurvy long before bars existed. The Whiskey Sour appears in Jerry Thomas's 1862 bartender's guide as an established type.
The Boston style — shaken with egg white — became the standard for texture-obsessed bartenders, while New York bars add a float of red wine and call it a New York Sour.
It is the grammar of the family: daiquiri, sidecar, margarita, gimlet are all dialects of the same sentence — spirit + citrus + sugar.
Origin contested — the entry keeps verified record and received legend distinct.
Sources — IBA Official Cocktails · Jerry Thomas, How to Mix Drinks (1862)
04Recipe versions
Each version is shown exactly as recorded in its source — unverified claims are flagged.
- IBA Official Cocktails
International Bartenders Association · iba-web-current · Official
- 45 ml Bourbon Whiskey
- 25 ml Fresh Lemon Juice
- 20 ml Sugar Syrup
- Few Drops of Egg White (Optional)
Pour all ingredients into cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well. Strain into cobbler glass. If served “On the rocks”, strain ingredients into old fashioned glass filled with ice. NOTE: If egg white is used shake little harder to release and incorporate the foam from the egg white. — Garnish with half orange slice and maraschino cherry, optionally use orange zest.
- How to Mix Drinks (Bar-Keeper's Handbook)
How to Mix Drinks (Bar-Keeper's Handbook)
Winter, G[eorge] · 1884 · Book
- Half tablespoonful of sugar ;
- Four to five dashes of lemon juice ;
- One squirt of syphon Vichy ;
- Fill glass with ice ;
- One wine glass of whiskey ;
Dissolve well ; Stir well strain in sour glass, dress with fruit, and smile ,
- Jerry Thomas, Bar-Tender's Guide
Jerry Thomas, Bar-Tender's Guide
Jerry Thomas · 1862 · Book · unverified
- 1 large tsp sugar
- Juice of half a small lemon
- 1 wine-glass bourbon
- Shaved ice
Shake, strain; orange & berry garnish.
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05Variations
- VariationNew York SourFloat of dry red wine over the foam→
- VariationBoston SourThe egg-white version
- VariationAmaretto SourStone-sweet variant; better with a split bourbon base
06The map
Spirits
People
