Lynchburg Lemonade is the signature cocktail of Jack Daniels Tennessee Whiskey. Apart from Tennessee whiskey, the recipe includes triple sec, freshly squeezed lemon juice, lemon and lime soda, and simple syrup.Â
Even though this whole thing looks like a fun marketing idea, the story of this drink is a bit more complicated. In fact, the inventor of the Lynchburg Lemonade is Tony Mason, a bartender and bar owner from Alabama who had nothing to do with Jack Daniels until the company stole his recipe.
Quick Facts Lynchburg Lemonade
- Method: built in glass
- Flavor profile: sweet and sour
- How to serve it: over ice
- Best glassware: long drink glass, lemonade jug
- Alcohol content: ~ 15% ABV, 19.5 grams of alcohol per serving
Make the perfect Lynchburg Lemonade with our recipe and then sip it while continuing to read about one of the biggest lawsuits about cocktail copyrights so far.
Equipment
- 1 Jigger
- 1 Bar spoon
Ingredients
- 1 oz Tennessee Whiskey
- 1 oz Triple Sec
- 0.75 oz Fresh lemon juice
- 0.25 oz Simple syrup
- 4 oz Lemon-lime soda - (e.g. Sprite or 7up)
Instructions
- Add Whiskey, Triple Sec, lemon juice, and simple syrup into an ice-filled glass and stir until everything is well-mixed.1 oz Tennessee Whiskey, 1 oz Triple Sec, 0.75 oz Fresh lemon juice, 0.25 oz Simple syrup
- Top up with chilled lemon-lime soda.4 oz Lemon-lime soda
- Garnish with slices of lemon, and your Lynchburg Lemonade is ready to be served.
Nutrition
Ingredients
The Lynchburg Lemonade, also known as Jack Daniels Lemonade, is based on whiskey and four other ingredients. -And while the original recipe for Lynchburg Lemonade asks for a sweet and sour, we prefer fresh ingredients. Here's what's in the whiskey cocktail:
- Tennessee Whiskey - Using Tennessee Whiskey is imperative to get that distinct flavor into the cocktail. Jack Daniels is the obvious choice, but there are worthy alternatives.
- Triple Sec - I prefer to use Cointreau in this recipe.
- Fresh lemon juice -Â freshly squeezed lemon juice is essential when you want to mix a fantastic drink.
- Simple syrup - sweetens the drink and balances the tart flavors of lemon juice and triple sec.
- Lemon-lime soda - Sprite or 7up are our go-to options for the Lynchburg Lemonade.
How to Make a Lynchburg Lemonade - Tips & Tricks
The original recipe for making a Lynchburg Lemonade asked for a sour mix. Make sure to replace that with some fresh lemon juice and simple syrup, as you can see in our recipe. It creates a much fresher taste.
You don't even need a cocktail shaker or mixing glass. You can easily build the drink in the cocktail glass. Fill the glass with ice to the rim - be very generous here. Then add all ingredients except for the soda and give everything a quick stir.
Top the glass up with chilled soda only once you have combined all other ingredients. Don't stir once after you have added the soda because it would lose some of its fizz.
Variations on the recipe
If fresh lemons make the drink too tart for your tastebuds, there are two ways to make it more palatable:
The first is using rich simple syrup or gomme syrup instead of regular syrup. That increases the sugar levels in the drink without adding additional elements. Due to the higher concentration of sugar, the Lynchburg Lemonade also gets a richer mouthfeel.
The second option is using honey syrup, also called honey mix. That makes the recipe slightly sweeter and adds a touch of honey which works exceptionally well with whiskey.
As an alternative to lemon juice, you can use other citrus juices. Grapefruit juice, for example, makes for a fancy little twist to the classic recipe and is best used in combination with gomme syrup.
Substitutes for Jack Daniels
If you don't want to use Jack Daniels in your Lynchburg Lemonade, try one of our other Tennessee Whiskey recommendations:
The first is George Dickel No.12 - This traditional sour mash Whiskey has a super smooth mouthfeel, a deep and rich flavor profile, and packs a punch at 45% ABV. And the best part is that this long-aged spirit is quite affordable at $25 per 750ml bottle.
Other great options are Prichard's Tennessee Whiskey, Heaven's Door Bourbon, and Uncle Nearest.
Of course, Jack Daniels remains the most obvious choice, is easy to get, and is affordable. So perhaps you wonder why you should look for substitutes at all? Mainly out of solidarity with the creator of the recipe...
History of the Lynchburg Lemonade Recipe
In 1980, Tony Mason (restaurateur and musician) developed the recipe for the Lynchburg lemonade. His formula was simple. It asked for 1 oz of Jack Daniels, 1 oz of triple sec, 1 oz of sour mix, and 4 ounces of lemon-lime soda.
When he decided to serve the drink to his guests at his restaurant and lounge, he received positive feedback throughout.
Two years later, a Jack Daniels sales representative, Winston Randle, came to the place and was introduced to Mason's creation. Randle enjoyed the serve and asked about the recipe - and that was when the trouble began.
In good faith, Mason told Randle the recipe and only asked to credit him should Jack Daniels decide to promote the drink.
As we know today, Jack Daniels did, indeed, promote it: Barely one year later, they launched a massive marketing campaign around the Lynchburg Lemonade recipe. The problem was they conveniently forgot to mention Mason anywhere.
In 1987 Mason sued Jack Daniels in a, for those times, monumental 13 Million Dollar lawsuit that he ultimately lost. An in-depth recap explains why and how the jury decided against Mason in 1989.
Until today, you can find the recipe for the Lynchburg Lemonade on their website without a hint of credit for its original creator. -That is why some people like to show solidarity with Mason and mix their Lynchburg Lemonade with Tennessee whiskey other than Jack Daniels.