Summer Cocktails: 4 Variations Around the Pisco Sour (Including a Vegan Option)

You may be familiar with the Pisco Sour, this typical alcoholic drink from Peru and Chile, made with Pisco (a wine brandy) and lime. The two countries vie for the paternity of this cocktail, the first traces of which date back to the 1700s. But the recipe as we know it today dates back to the 1920s, with the famous drops of Angostura (bitter) and whipped egg whites. If you are already a fan and want to vary the recipes, or if you are discovering this delicious drink, here is something to excel and enjoy when it comes to Pisco Sour.

The classic Pisco Sour recipe

Ingredients for 4 glasses of Pisco Sour

• 40cl of pisco
• 12 cl lime juice (preferably freshly squeezed)
• 4 cl of cane sugar syrup
• 4 whipped egg whites (+ 1 teaspoon of white sugar, but it is optional)
• 16 drops of Angostura
• Crushed ice (about 4 ice cubes)

How to make a Pisco Sour

Just mix all the ingredients (except the Angostura) in a shaker, first about twenty seconds without ice (“ dry smoothie “). Then add the ice for another ten seconds before pouring into a cocktail glass. Once in the glass you can garnish the mousse with 4 drops of Angostura.

If you don’t have a cocktail shaker, you can start by mixing the pisco, lemon juice, and cane syrup. Then beat the egg whites until stiff (with the optional teaspoon of white sugar if desired). Once very frothy (they don’t need to be extra firm), you can add them to the other ingredients without mixing too much, before dividing the preparation into the 4 glasses so that the egg white forms a nice foam on the surface. Add the crushed ice before decorating with 4 drops of Angostura and serve. If you don’t have Angostura, you can substitute it with cinnamon or tabasco, depending on your taste and your level of audacity.

Vegan Pisco Sour recipe

Ingredients for 4 glasses of Vegan Pisco Sour

• 40cl of pisco
• 12 cl lime juice (preferably freshly squeezed)
• 4 cl of sugar cane syrup or agave syrup
• Acquafaba = the juice of a large can of chickpeas (at least 300 g)
• 16 drops of Angostura
• Crushed ice (about 4 ice cubes)

How to prepare a vegan Pisco Sour

Instead of egg whites, aquafaba (that is, the cooking juice of chickpeas, rich in proteins) can be whipped with an electric whisk. Once you have obtained a relatively firm consistency, you can combine it with the other ingredients previously mixed in a shaker, before pouring everything into glasses and decorating each one with a few drops of Angostura.

The Cointreau Sour recipe for orange fans

Ingredients for 4 glasses of Cointreau Sour

• 4 egg whites
• 18cl of Cointreau
• 8 cl of lemon juice (yellow or green, preferably fresh)
• 12 cl of orange juice (preferably fresh)

How to prepare a Cointreau Sour

Again, pour all ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice cubes, shake well, then strain into a glass. Finally, you can decorate with an orange and/or lemon zest. This version turns out to be a little less alcoholic than the Pisco Sour or Tequila Sour.

Tequila Sour Recipe

Ingredients for 4 glasses of Tequila Sour

• 40cl of Tequila
• 12 cl of lemon juice (yellow or green, preferably freshly squeezed)
• 4 cl of brown sugar syrup
• 4 whipped egg whites (+ 1 teaspoon of white sugar, but it is optional)
• 16 drops of Angostura
• Crushed ice (about 4 ice cubes)

How to prepare a Tequila Sour

Even when you don’t have pisco at home, you can take inspiration from Latin America to make other cocktails, like the Tequila Sour. Basically, it’s the same recipe as a Pisco Sour, except we replace the pisco (which has grape, pepper, and melon flavors) with Tequila (less fruity, more woody). The result seems less sweet and will especially appeal to people who like drier cocktails or margaritas, for example. It is also a relatively more neutral base, which you can customize by adding fruit juice or syrups, for example.

Just shake all the ingredients, first dry, then with ice cubes, pour into a glass, before decorating with a few drops of Angostura.

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