Message 18326 of 39188 in General Discussion

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> ...I make a little mixture on the side... I'm sure putting the two
> straight into the cocktail is just as good...
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And was what was "originally" done (eg. for drinks such as a "Whiskey Sour"). 
Sour mix was supposedly first developed (ie. the "from scratch" variety) since 
so many cocktails relied on "sugar + lemon juice", that bartenders figured 
they could save time by mixing them together ahead of time.

It was later, that some hopefully well-meaning individual realized he could 
make it in large batches and sell it to bars... and then somebody else 
realized he could make it cheaper, and last longer, by using artificial 
ingredients.

> Some call for eggwhites in it also, no?
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Yes. Just a little dash of egg-white will add a nice little bit of foam, as 
well as some body, to the cocktail. I'm not sure if it really is necessary for 
all "sugar+lemon" cocktails, but for something like a "Pisco Sour" or "Clover 
Club" it is part of the presentation. For myself, I have no qualms about using 
egg-white. But if I'm in a "group" situation, I'll pick up a jar of pasturized 
egg-whites and use them. I keep it on ice, and toss it at the end of the 
evening.

-Robert Hess
 www.DrinkBoy.com
 www.MuseumOfTheAmericanCocktail.org