The Empress Sour

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Our love for Empress Gin all started with pit stop at the New Hampshire State Liquor Store. We were looking for something new and different to try without breaking the bank and were immediately drawn to Empress with its vibrant purple color.

We thought it could be a tad gimmicky, but were pleasantly surprised when the mild juniper and smoothness came through. These traits are why we love mixing this with few other ingredients, and why this particular cocktail is a favorite. A dash of lavender bitters gives a tiny extra oomph of sophistication.

The Empress Sour - How To

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients to the shaker (without ice)

2. Shake for 20 seconds (dry shake) vigorously and in circular motions. You’re trying to get air into the egg whites.

3. Add ice and shake again for 20 seconds (wet shake) again utilizing circular motions.

4. Double strain into a chilled coupe or martini glass

5. Garnish with traditional lemon twist or make it extra with dehydrated lemon with edible flowers and dried pea flower

Ingredients:

• 2 oz Empress Gin

• 1/2 oz lime juice 

• 1/2 oz lemon juice

• 1oz simple syrup

• 1 egg white

• Dash of lavender bitters

Tips and Tricks for getting that foam:

• Getting the perfect texture of foam from the egg whites takes some elbow grease. So give your shaking a little something extra.

• Beware of spontaneous combustion when you get further into shaking, the egg white proteins and citrus are emulsifying and developing air bubbles while putting pressure on the shaker seal. We always shake with a kitchen towel wrapped around the shaker to help prevent those mishaps. It helps “tie down” the top of the shaker.

• One egg white should be 1oz though the extra large eggs in the super market these days could easily be more. If you don’t want the extra foam, whisk the egg white slightly to break up the proteins before measuring into a jigger. This way you won’t get the clumps overflowing when measuring. This is also a great idea if you are making more than one cocktail, similarly pre crack all the eggs and whisk the egg whites slightly before hand.

• Egg beaters can also be used, though we prefer fresh.

• Aquafaba (chickpea juice you can get out of a can of chickpeas) is also a great alternative. Though we have not had the best of luck getting the same full foam as we get with egg whites.

• The double strain is not fully necessary though we think it helps give a more velvety and uniform finish to the foam.