The Pisco Sour is a classic Sour cocktail with a long history. It is made following the classic combination of spirit, fresh citrus juice, simple syrup, and egg white.
Like with Pisco, the debate about whether this drink has roots in Peru or Chile has been going on for years with no conclusive answer as of yet. But regardless of its origin, the Pisco Sour is one delicious drink.
The recipe follows the basic template of all our favorite Sour Cocktails but adds two extra elements. The ingredients you need for the original Pisco Sour recipe are:
The process for making this drink is: Dry shake first, shake again with ice, garnish with three drops of Angostura bitters, serve, and enjoy.
It's imperative that you get the foam right. That gives the drink its characteristic silky texture and holds the bitters in place beautifully, hence the dry shake. So let's look at this more closely:
Dry shaking means, you first shake all ingredients vigorously without ice for about 20 seconds to create a nice and firm foam. Then you open the shaker, add ice cubes and shake again.
You can also reverse the process, which potentially leads to an even thicker foam. That's especially helpful if you have trouble getting this part right.
Make sure to press the shaker cups together while shaking dry because the seal is not as tight without it. Should you, in turn, have difficulties separating the tins when shaking with ice, find help here.
Strain the contents with the help of a Hawthorne Strainer into a chilled Sour glass (without ice) or into an Old Fashioned glass (over ice). The latter is larger, hence leaving enough room for ice cubes.
Finally, when garnishing your drink with three drops of Angostura bitters, use a toothpick or a cocktail pick to twirl them or turn them into a heart shape. You do that by dragging the foam with the help of the pick right through the middle of each drop.
Even if it may sound unconventional, many Peruvian bartenders blend this drink. And indeed, that delivers great results.
If you fancy trying this at home, consider adding slightly more sugar (0.75oz instead of 0.5oz) than you would for a shaken recipe. When blended, the Pisco Sour will taste much rounder and works well with a bit more sweetness.
Outside of Peru, the Pisco Sour is almost always shaken, though. That's also the version I prefer.
For most cocktails, the question is who, as in which person, invented the recipe. In the case of the Pisco Sour, it's more elementary. Peru and Chile fight passionately about who brought forth this delicious drink.
Currently, evidence points toward Peru, but nothing could be proven so far, and new stories, findings, and theories keep coming up every once in a while.
If you managed to get a decent bottle of Pisco, here are some recipes to get the most out of it: