🍒 Amaretto Sour

Italian almond liqueur, fresh lemon, and egg white foam — the sour classic done right.

4 min
Serves 1
Shaken
Rocks Glass
Ingredients
  • 1½ oz Amaretto
  • ¾ oz Fresh lemon juice
  • ½ oz Bourbon (optional — adds depth and balance)
  • 1 Egg white (optional — essential for proper foam)
  • Maraschino cherry & orange slice to garnish
Method
  1. 1
    Dry shakeCombine amaretto, lemon juice, bourbon, and egg white in a cocktail shaker WITHOUT ice. Shake hard for 15 seconds. This emulsifies the egg white and builds the foam structure.
  2. 2
    Add ice, shake againOpen the shaker, add a full scoop of ice, and shake again vigorously for 10 more seconds. The double-shake gives you a silkier, more stable foam.
  3. 3
    StrainStrain into a rocks glass over fresh ice. The foam should billow proud above the glass rim.
  4. 4
    GarnishPlace a maraschino cherry and an orange slice on the foam. Serve immediately — the foam collapses if left too long.

Why the Bourbon Makes All the Difference

For decades the Amaretto Sour was dismissed as a saccharine drink — oversweetened amaretto dumped over pre-made sour mix. Cocktail writer Jeffrey Morgenthaler revived it by adding a half ounce of bourbon, fresh lemon juice, and egg white foam. The result is a completely different drink.

The bourbon is the key insight: it cuts the amaretto's sweetness with oak and spice, making the drink genuinely balanced rather than cloying. The egg white is optional but strongly recommended — it gives the drink a silky, pillowy texture that lifts it into the top tier of classic sours.

Variations

🥃 Bourbon Forward

Use 1 oz bourbon and 1 oz amaretto for a drier, more spirit-forward version. Better for bourbon lovers who want balance over sweetness.

🍊 Orange Amaretto Sour

Add ½ oz fresh orange juice and reduce lemon to ½ oz. The orange softens tartness and plays beautifully to amaretto's apricot notes.

✨ Amaretto Spritz

Shake amaretto and lemon, strain over a large rock, top with 2 oz Prosecco. Light, bubbly, and dangerously easy to drink.

Related
🍸 Cocktails A–Z Browse all 72 classic recipes 🍒 Liqueur Guide Amaretto is the star ingredient 🥃 Whiskey Sour Same sour structure, bourbon base 🇵🇪 Pisco Sour Egg white foam, South American spirit