Trinidad Sour Cocktail Recipe
A whole ounce and a half of Angostura as the base spirit, balanced by orgeat, lemon and rye. It should not work, and it does.
- Category: New Era Drinks
- Glass: Coupe glass
- ABV: 22%
- Difficulty: Medium
- Prep time: ~3 min
Ingredients
- Angostura bitters (as a base)45 ml (1.5 oz)
- Orgeat syrup30 ml (1 oz)
- Fresh lemon juice22 ml (0.7 oz)
- Rye whiskey15 ml (0.5 oz)
How to Make It
- Add all ingredients to a shaker with ice.
- Shake hard until well chilled.
- Double-strain into a chilled coupe.
Garnish
None
What it tastes like
It has a bitter backbone, the citrus acidity leads, there is a spiced warmth to it and it is layered, giving you something different each sip.
The technique
Shaking. Anything with juice, syrup, egg white or cream gets shaken: the shaker chills the drink and adds roughly 20% water, and that water is what takes the edge off. Twelve to fifteen seconds, until the tin frosts over. Under-shaking leaves the drink harsh because it never got enough dilution.
Glass and ice
A stemmed, shallow coupe. The stem keeps your hand's warmth away from the drink, and the wide bowl carries the aroma to your nose. Served without ice.
Ingredient notes and substitutes
- Orgeat syrup
- Almond syrup with orange flower water in it — the signature of a Mai Tai. Without it, sweetened almond milk plus a drop of almond extract gets you close.
- Fresh lemon juice
- Freshly squeezed lemon; one lemon gives 30-40 ml. It can swap with lime, but lemon is softer and less aromatic, so use a touch more.
- Rye whiskey
- Rye whiskey. Where bourbon is sweet, rye brings black pepper and a mint-like sharpness; in drinks with sweet vermouth, like a Manhattan, that sharpness is what holds the balance.
The Story
Giuseppe González built it in 2009 around the one bottle every bar owns and nobody pours more than a dash of.
Frequently asked questions
- How is a Trinidad Sour mixed?
- It is shaken and served in a coupe.
- How strong is a Trinidad Sour?
- Roughly 22% ABV as served — in fortified-wine territory — plan it as a single drink.
- Can a Trinidad Sour be made without alcohol?
- Simply leaving the spirit out does not work — the body and the bitterness go with it. The 86 alcohol-free recipes in the catalogue are built to hit that balance from the start.
- Is a Trinidad Sour hard to make?
- Moderate. A shaker or mixing glass plus a strainer covers it.
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Alcoholic drink recipes are intended for those aged 18 and over. Please drink responsibly.