This apple whisky sour is a delightful twist on the popular classic. Featuring simple ingredients, it is deliciously flavoured with fresh apple cider and bitters. And it only takes two minutes to make. It has quickly become one of my favourites.

An apple and an apple whisky sour cocktail on a countertop with white flowers.

Enjoy this in autumn or winter when the stores and farmers' markets are stocked with fresh apple cider. This satisfying cocktail will surely be missed when cider season is officially over until next autumn.

Interested in another apple-based cocktail? I think this fall sangria is also one you will absolutely love. Or, try my blood orange negroni for a delicious winter citrus drink.

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Ingredients
Instructions
Equipment
Tip for Success
📖 Recipe

Ingredients

Bourbon whiskey - In bourbon-based cocktails, I often use Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon. It's quite affordable, which is what you want in a whiskey that will be mixed into a cocktail, and yet has a delicious buttery and nutty flavour profile that blends so well.
Apple cider - Look for apple cider in the stores and farmers' markets starting around fall. I used a sweet honeycrisp cider. Don't use mulled cider for this recipe.
Freshly squeezed lemon juice - This staple in the classic whiskey sour adds a burst of fresh citrus.
Pasteurized egg whites - Egg whites are necessary to create the delicious foam on top of this cocktail. I find it's easiest to buy a little jug of pasteurized egg whites, though you can separate the whites from eggs yourself. Check out this guide on how to separate egg whites safely to prevent bacteria from getting into your cocktail.
Angostura bitters - Infused with flowers, herbs, and spices, this Spanish concoction has been adding flavour to drinks and food since 1824. We add it to give delicious, herbal depth and aromatics to the cocktail.
Simple syrup - I find that ¼ oz of this sweetener is perfect amount for this drink, but you can adjust it to make the cocktail more or less sweet to your preference.

See the recipe card below for quantities.

Instructions

Start by adding all of the ingredients, except for the angostura bitters, into a cocktail shaker.

Dry shake (meaning to shake without ice) for 30 seconds, then add some ice and shake for another 20 seconds.

Strain into a coupe glass and top with the bitters. If you want to make the bitters hearts as I have, use a dropper to place the bitter drops where you want them. Then, drag a toothpick through the foam, downwards through the centres of the drops to form hearts.

Equipment

To make this apple whisky sour you will need:

Cocktail shaker
Japanese jigger
Cocktail strainer

All of these and many more useful bartending tools can be found inside this cocktail bar set.

cocktail bar set

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You will also need a coupe glass to serve it in.

coupe glass

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Tip for Success

Don't skip the dry shake part of making this cocktail. This serves to turn the egg whites into a beautiful, thick froth. You follow the dry shake with a shake using ice to chill and dilute the cocktail.

📖 Recipe