Whiskey sour

The whiskey sour is a mixed drink containing whiskey (often bourbon), lemon juice, sugar, and optionally, a dash of egg white or cocktails foamer. With the egg white, it is sometimes called a Boston Sour. With a few bar spoons of full-bodied red wine floated on top, it is often referred to as a New York Sour. It is shaken and served either straight up or over ice.

Whiskey Sour

IBA official cocktail
A whiskey sour with ice cubes and a lemon slice
Type	Cocktail
Primary alcohol by volume	Whiskey
Served	On the rocks or straight up
Standard garnish	Maraschino cherry and half orange slice
Standard drinkware	Old Fashioned glass
IBA specified ingredients	4.5 cl (3 parts) bourbon whiskey 3 cl (2 parts) fresh lemon juice 1.5 cl (1 part) simple syrup
Preparation	Shake with ice. Strain into chilled glass, garnish and serve.
Timing	Before Dinner
Notes	If served 'On the rocks', strain ingredients into old-fashioned glass filled with ice.
Whiskey Sour recipe at DrinkBoy IBA

The traditional garnish is half an orange slice and a maraschino cherry. The original version is made with Limón de Pica.[1]

A variant of the whiskey sour is the Ward 8, which often is based on bourbon or rye whiskey, and includes both lemon and orange juices, and grenadine syrup as the sweetener. The egg white sometimes employed in other whiskey sours is not usually included.

• 
  A whiskey sour shaken and served up in a coupe glass.

History

The oldest historical mention of a whiskey sour was published in the Wisconsin newspaper, Waukesha Plain Dealer, in 1870.[2][3]

In 1962, the Universidad del Cuyo published a story, citing the Peruvian newspaper El Comercio de Iquique, which indicated that Elliott Stubb created the "whisky sour" in Iquique in 1872.[4][1] (El Comercio de Iquique was published by Modesto Molina between 1874 and 1879.)

References

1. Universidad Nacional de Cuyo (1962). "Cierto dia Elliot Stubb estaba haciendo algunos experimentos en la en la "coctelera" con whisky y limón de pica y su sabor alcanzó delicias superiores a todos los otros menjurjes que acostumbraba a dar a sus clientes. "Voy a ponerle un poco de dulce", se dijo. Echó azúcar a una porción de jugo de limón de Pica, un poco de hielo, whisky en proporción y batió algunos segundos Y probo el mas exquisito drink que habia preparado. En adelante dijo Elliot—éste será mi trago de batalla,—mi trago favorito—, y se llamará Whisky Sour (sour, el ácido del limón). Luego dominó las fronteras y hacía su aparición en Inglaterra, donde ya estaba cimentada la fama del limón de Pica, el que hasta ahora se continúa exportando a la capital del Reino Unido y otros puntos de las Islas Británicas". Anales del Instituto de Lingüística. Mendoza, Argentina. VIII: 385.
2. "Photo from newspaperarchive.com". Waukesha Plaindealer. January 4, 1870. Archived from the original on July 23, 2011.
3. "Photo from newspaperarchive.com. Magnified section". Waukesha Plaindealer. January 4, 1870. Archived from the original on July 23, 2011.
4. "¿Sabía usted que el exquisito whisky sour, hoy trago de acaudalados, es de origen iquiqueño?. Cuentan las tradiciones y en algunos párrafos del periódico "El Comercio de Iquique" que vimos en viejos archivos del Club Chino de este puerto que un buen mayordomo del velero "Sunshine" determinó anclar en este puerto..." Historias de la Pampa Salitrera. Comité del Salitre. Chile. p. 49.