Cranberry Whiskey Sour

A Cranberry Whiskey Sour is a festive take on a traditional cocktail. Using a few fresh ingredients and your favorite bourbon you can make this drink a holiday favorite.

Much like a traditional Whiskey Sour the main ingredients in this cocktail will be your favorite bourbon, a sweet component, and a sour component. But I’ve kicked this holiday version up a couple of notches with my Cranberry Simple Syrup as the sweet and an egg white to tone down the sharpness as well as add the richness a holiday cocktail deserves.

Cranberry Whiskey Sour

A whiskey sour is a fairly simple drink to mix at home. There are only three main ingredients – a good bourbon, lemon juice and simple syrup. This festive version also uses egg whites, it won’t make or break this cocktail but it does elevate it. The key to making this a really good cocktail is the quality of the ingredients.

Starting with a really good bourbon or whiskey. The best kind is your favorite kind, one that you like to drink. My husband truly enjoys taste-testing bourbon, but as a general rule, we are a Buffalo Trace family. Bourbon is an American made whiskey with at least 51% corn in its mash and as corn farmers we support that!

When it comes to lemon juice I might be a tad snobby. We are so lucky to have fresh fruits available year around here so fresh squeezed lemon juice for me. I also like to buy lemons on sale and go ahead and squeeze the juice and just keep a bottle of it in my refrigerator. I don’t mind baking with purchased lemon juice or using it in a pinch when I need a drink!

Simple syrup is a super easy thing to make. It is a 1:1 ratio of sugar and water and stores in the refrigerator. In this version of a whiskey sour I use my Cranberry Simple Syrup, it’s super easy to make!

Last but not least for this festive version is egg whites. An egg white adds a richness to the cocktail and can tone down any bitterness you might taste from the bourbon. I am not a huge bourbon fan and I love this cocktail, I truly think it is the egg white. I have separated and used a egg straight from the carton but for guests I like to buy pasturized liquid egg whites.

Gather Your Ingredients and Supplies

• Bourbon – your favorite, we love Buffalo Trace but there are all kinds out there. Feel free to use a traditional whisky as well if you like
• Lemon juice – I love fresh squeezed but I’m not passing up a cocktail if it isn’t
• Cranberry Simple Syrup – this is one of my holiday favorites and is super easy to make
• Fresh Rosemary for garnish – trust me on this one
• Fresh sugar coated cranberries for garnish – because it just fun
• Cocktail shaker or a jar with a tight fitting lid
• Glass with ice in it

Let’s Make a Cranberry Whiskey Sour

1. Add 3 ounce each of your favorite bourbon, lemon juice, cranberry simple syrup along with 4 Tablespoons of egg whites to a cocktail shaker or jar with a tight-fitting lid.
2. Shake to thoroughly combine and to be sure the egg white is incorporated.
3. Pour into a glass full of ice.
4. Garnish with a rosemary sprig and some sugar-coated fresh cranberries.

Tips, Tricks, Comments, and Questions

Garnishing drinks makes me happy, are they necessary? Nope but do they add to the festive feel and taste? Absolutly!

Fresh cranberries are easy to find and a quick dunk in a little lemon juice or even water than tossed in sugar get you an easy and beautiful garnish for this drink. And that fresh rosemary sprig not only looks good but smells like fresh pine when you take a drink.

This is a dry shake cocktail, because of the egg whites. That simply means that there is no ice in the cocktail shaker, it ensures and allows the egg white to thoroughly combine for a frothy foamy outcome.

I love fun cocktails for special occasions and this is my Thanksgiving cocktail. I also like to serve my Sparkling Cranberry Sangria, as opposed to over complicating cocktail hour offering 2 choices there is something for everyone.