Feeling Fancy and Frothy?

Wednesday, August 25 is National Whiskey Sour Day! And we know at least one Spiritless founder will be celebrating in style: our COO, Lexie Lancaster Larsen. 

“I love a completely Spiritless whiskey sour,” she says. “It’s creamy, it tastes sinful. My grandfather and dad would drink whiskey sours, and I can remember grabbing the little plastic sword they’d use for their lemon slices. It’s sentimental.” 

Whiskey sours rose to recognition in the 1860s, when the first recipe was published in the 1862 book, The Bartender's Guide by Jerry Thomas. They were around long before that, however. In fact, British sailors often drank them to avoid scurvy — and to circumvent the lack of dependable drinking water — on long sea journeys. 

There are four components that make a whiskey sour shine. 

• Bright, citrusy, acidic juice. Take our advice and use freshly squeezed lemon juice. 
• Bourbon and/or Spiritless Kentucky 74. Going totally Spiritless cuts the calorie count to 91; halfsies makes it 156 calories. Either way, you need the floral, warm notes of bourbon to balance the other ingredients.
• Sweet simple syrup. The sugar smooths out the lemon juice to deliver a refreshing cocktail that’s not-too-sweet and not-too-sour.
• Garnish. An orange wheel or lemon wedge and a maraschino cherry add a punch of pizzazz.

Contemporary variations on the whiskey sour recipe call for splashes of Orangina soda, sprigs of thyme, various types of bitters and even vermouth. For a spicier kick, try Liber & Co.'s Fiery Ginger Syrup. We also like to add a dash of egg white to dial up the fancy factor — which technically turns your whiskey sour into a Boston sour, though we won’t tell if you don’t. ;-)