Mix Up the Sour Cocktail with Easy Recipes from Boston Bartenders

Cocktail from Blossom Bar | Best Restaurants in Brookline
By Eric Twardzik · 04/29/2021

Forget about any sugar-sweet, hangover-inducing sour mixes you’ve seen, because these simple combinations of spirits, citrus juice, and sweetener shine with fresh ingredients and a few thoughtful twists. They’re also among the easiest cocktails to pull off at home. Take back the sour by trying your hand at these recipes from some of our favorite Boston bars and restaurants.

Pisco Sour
Leave it to this Peruvian restaurant par excellence to serve the ideal version of Peru’s national cocktail. Celeste’s iteration is made from a single-grape Peruvian Pisco and utilizes egg whites and a dry shake to produce a lusciously frothy head. Just make sure you have a toothpick on hand to turn the traditional topper of Angostura Bitters into the cocktail equivalent of latte art.

Shawmut St Sour
Named after Coppa’s South End address, the Shawmut St Sour is an Italianized twist on the New York Sour. It builds on the original’s base of whiskey, simple syrup, and lemon juice by introducing the bitter aperitif Bruto Americano and reaches for Lambrusco when it comes to the red wine floater.

Sig Sour
This equal-parts cocktail from Citizen Public House & Oyster Bar attempts to rehab Jägermeister’s fratty image by pairing the licorice-y German liqueur with coconut rum and grilled pineapple juice. While the last ingredient may sound a little esoteric, all that’s required is a cast iron pan, a mesh strainer, and a pineapple.

Bocadillo Sour
The Bocadillo Sour at Blossom Bar pays tribute to director of operations Will Isaza’s favorite childhood snack, a Colombian bite made with guava and cheese. The recipe also references a Mojito with rum, lime juice, simple syrup, and mint, but Isaza infuses the spirit component with guava paste and adds sweet mascarpone to give the drink a creamy-whipped texture.

Velvet Elvis
In this wonderfully named dram, Sarma takes what would be a standard Gin Sour and kicks it up with a house-made cranberry syrup, Angostura Bitters, and the herbaceous Czech liqueur Becherovka. It may not have any direct connection to The King, but it is all shook up.

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