Whiskey Sour cocktail drink in a small glass next to a cherry and slices of lemon on a dark wood surface

Whiskey Sour Cocktail Drink

Spirits, sweet, and sour come together in 10 minutes to make a delicious cocktail recipe called a Whiskey Sour with a few simple ingredients.

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Quite a few years ago, just after Justin and I were married, we went on a Caribbean cruise with some of our best friends. We stood up at their wedding, they stood up in ours. She is half the reason we met. She invited me to frisbee where Justin and I met. Anyway, great friends and we had an amazing time on the cruise. This cruise is where Justin discovered the wonderful drink called a Whiskey Sour.

Man and woman posed for a professional photo in front of a grey backdrop
Professional Photo from the cruise

Our cruise left from Miami and docked in Key West, Grand Cayman, and Jamaica. Since we had all been to Key West, we didn’t want to do much of an excursion there. We walked around the island, went to the buoy, ate some Key Lime Pie at the Six-Toed Cat (the best place in Key West to get pie), and did some geocaching.

Man and woman next to the Southermost Point buoy in Key West, Florida
The buoy at the tip of Key West

In Grand Cayman, we split up since we felt relatively safe there. The guys wanted to go snorkeling, and the girls wanted to do a kayak trip. So, we did!

In Jamaica, we did an excursion of zip lining and river tubing. That was my first time on a big zip line and it was fun! We had the craziest bus driver and thought we were going to go over a cliff trying to get there, but it was a great time overall.

Man and Woman with helmets and harnesses on in front of a river surrounded by lush green trees
Getting ready to go on the zip line in Jamaica

Enough about the cruise. You’re here for the drinks! Since we had all four been on Carnival cruises before, we were invited to the Past Guest Reception. This included free drinks! Justin and our friend both ordered a Whiskey Sour and loved the taste. Every time a waiter or waitress would come around with more drinks, they would both get another. We lost count how many they ended up drinking, but it was a lot! Of course, they were small drinks, but they didn’t care.

Red table covered with multiple glasses of Whiskey Sour, some full, some empty
Only a few of the Whiskey Sours drank that evening!

Recently, we were reminiscing about the cruise and laughing about all the Whiskey Sours they drank. So, of course, Justin decided to make his own at home. It isn’t exactly like the ones from the cruise, as theirs had a bit of foam at the top and ours didn’t. But he said the flavor was the same. (I take his word for it, I only like drinks with rum!)

Whiskey Sour Step by Step

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 oz whiskey
  • 1 oz lemon juice
  • 1 cherry

Preparation

Start by making a simple syrup. Combine the water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir continuously until the sugar has dissolved completely.

The drink can be made shaken or stirred. Justin prefers shaken.

Shaken: Pour the whiskey, simple syrup, and lemon juice into a shaker. Place the cap on and shake to combine. Pour in a glass over ice and garnish with a cherry.

Stirred: Pour the whiskey, simple syrup, and lemon juice into a glass over ice. Stir gently, then add the cherry to garnish.

Whiskey Sour in a small glass with two slices of lemon and a cherry in front of it, next to an almost empty bottle of alcohol with a cocktail shaker in the background all on a dark wooden surface (vertical)

Recipe

Originally Published On: April 1, 2019

Last Updated On: June 28, 2023

Whiskey Sour in a small glass with two slices of lemon and a cherry in front of it, next to an almost empty bottle of alcohol with a cocktail shaker in the background all on a dark wooden surface

Whiskey Sour Cocktail

Spirits, sweet, and sour come together in 10 minutes to make a delicious cocktail recipe called a Whiskey Sour with a few simple ingredients.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 10 minutes
Course:
Drinks
Cuisine:
American
Keyword:
alcoholic
|
simple syrup
|
whiskey
Servings: 1 drink
4.80 from 5 votes

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 oz whiskey
  • 1 oz lemon juice
  • 1 cherry

Instructions

  • In a small saucepan, over medium heat, combine the water and sugar
  • Stir constantly until the sugar has fully dissolved, about 5-10 minutes
  • Note: this makes more simple syrup than is needed for one drink, you can use it to serve multiple drinks or refrigerate the extra for up to 4 weeks
Shaken
  • Pour 1 oz of the simple syrup into a shaker with the whiskey and lemon juice
  • Shake and pour over ice
  • Garnish with a cherry
Stirred
  • Pour 1 oz of the simple syrup into a glass over ice with the whiskey and lemon juice
  • Gently stir
  • Garnish with a cherry
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Nutrition Facts
Whiskey Sour Cocktail
Amount Per Serving
Calories 540
% Daily Value*
Sodium 7mg0%
Carbohydrates 103g34%
Sugar 101g112%
Vitamin C 11mg13%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutrition content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.

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27 thoughts on “Whiskey Sour Cocktail Drink”

  1. 5 stars
    And now you have me over here about to go research CRUISES!! hahaha! I need one so bad. They’re seriously the best way to travel and… Well, they inspire you to recreate tasty indulgences at HOME 😉

    1. Girl, me too! The school calendar was just released for the upcoming school year and the boys have a week off almost every month so we are trying to plan a family vacation in at least one of the weeks!

  2. 4 stars
    That’s easy breezy! My husband loves whiskey cocktails. He would surely love this recipe! Gonna try soon. Although I don’t think he’d like that much sugar.

    1. We haven’t been geocaching in a while, but now that my boys are getting older and enjoy hikes we are thinking of picking it up again. For a while, I was making sure to get at least one any time we would travel so I would get the badges for the different states!

    1. It’s a great drink for a relaxing weekend. My husband has started doing the photos (he has more patience for it than I do) so I’ll let him know they are appreciated! Enjoy 🙂

  3. 5 stars
    Yummm…I can’t wait to try this recipe! We are beer drinkers but recently started drinking Whiskey…I am sure this cocktail will make it a perfect drink for the weekend. 🙂

  4. Omg can we say yum?!? This cocktail looks absolutely delicious!!!!! I will definitely be giving it a try next time I have a whiskey craving!

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