winter bourbon sour
Sippin’ on a winter wonder sour…
If you’ve been here awhile, you’ll see that I’ve slowed my roll significantly on cocktail recipes. Matter of fact, I develop fewer dishes as a whole, but cocktails especially have drifted to the wayside. The simple reason for that (other than I just don’t have a whole lot of time) is that I don’t drink a whole lot nowadays. I never drank heavily, but was a bit more experimental with flavors and liked to mix at home more often. My cocktail or beer consumption is much more sparse. I’m more inclined to grab a hot chocolate, to be honest.
Since it’s the holidays, I’m reaching for pretty much anything cozy, and I just love styling with Christmas decor. The scenes are festive and inviting and bring me a lot of satisfaction to create. I hope to generate a sense of peace with any backdrop, as well as a creative sip or nibble you can enjoy while hanging out in your own bubble of comfort.
The Winter Bourbon Sour is a lovely, easy drink to enjoy on chilly evenings, certainly light enough to accompany dinner or as a home happy hour fixture. The cinnamon-infused maple simple syrup adds a subtle warmth to the fruity base, and its great to have on hand for pancakes, too. Just a hint if you have some left over.
Winter Wonder Sour
The base of a bourbon sour is, well, bourbon, and sour. Ahem. Lemon, sugar, and egg white constitute the other base components, and here we give them a little spiffing, a level up.
Simmer the maple cinnamon syrup first. Just add maple, cinnamon sticks, and water to a sauce pan and heat gently until thickened. There should be a nice scent of spice roaming about the kitchen. Cool the syrup a bit. Any that you don’t use in the drink will keep up to a week in the fridge.
Next, combine some of the syrup with bourbon, cranberry juice (I like a 100% juice with no added sugar), lemon juice, and an egg white. If the egg white skeeves you out, you don’t have to use it, but you won’t get that pretty white foam hat when you pour.
Dry shake at a violent speed for 45-60 seconds to really work that egg white into the cocktail. Add ice and finish with 30 seconds more of aggressive air beating.
Strain into a coupe glass (I adore these right now!) – be sure to get all that gorgeous froth piled atop. Garnish with some sprigs of rosemary and maybe a cranberry or two on a cocktail pick. I chose to sugar my rosemary, which is a very easy process that lends a certain glitz and glam to each individual glass.
Feeling festive yet? Don’t worry, there’s plenty more coming if you need a little Christmas right this very minute.
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Cozy up for happy hour:
Merry Berry Christmas Margarita
winter bourbon sour
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 oz bourbon
- 2 oz cranberry juice
- 1 oz cinnamon maple syrup (recipe below)
- 1/2 oz lemon juice
- 1 egg white
cinnamon maple syrup
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 2 cinnamon sticks
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine the maple syrup, 1/3 cup of water, and the cinnamon sticks. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until slightly thickened. Let cool.
- In a shaker or jar, combine the bourbon, cranberry juice, syrup, lemon juice, and egg white. Dry shake for 45 seconds. Add ice and shake vigorously for 30 seconds. Strain into a coupe glass or another small cocktail glass. Garnish with sugared rosemary and/or cranberries, as desired.
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