Classic cocktail · Guided recipe

New York Sour

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A whiskey sour crowned with a float of red wine that bleeds down through the drink. As beautiful as it is delicious.

Preparation~3 minEasyStrengthStrongabout 24% ABVMethodShaken9 guided stepsIngredients4Short (rocks) glass

Sour

In the glassRye whiskey · Fresh lemon juice · Simple syrup · Dry red wine

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What goes in

Ingredients

An empty clear rocks glass with low straight sides and a heavy base. — Serving glassRocks glass

Set up before you pour

Use a rocks glass.

The low, sturdy bowl suits concentrated drinks and gives one large cube enough width.

Standard size: 300 ml10¼ oz
Ice & serve: Fill it with fresh ice cubes.
If you don’t own one: Use a small water tumbler with a heavy base.

Tools to set out

cocktail shaker
strainer (or a small sieve)
jigger or measuring spoon

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Scale to your short (rocks) glassWe’ll remember this glass size.

Rye whiskey60 ml
Dry red wine15 ml
Fresh lemon juice22 ml
Simple syrup22 ml

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From bottle to glass

Method

01
Measure into the shaker
Pour 60 ml rye whiskey into your shaker
- Rye whiskey
02
Measure into the shaker
Add 22 ml fresh lemon juice
- Fresh lemon juice
03
Measure into the shaker
Add 22 ml simple syrup
- Simple syrup
04
Ice the shaker
Fill the shaker with ice
Why it mattersFill it right up — more ice chills faster with less watering down.
05
Seal and shake
Seal and shake hard
Why it mattersCold hands mean it’s working. Shake until the tin frosts over.
06
Ice the glass
Fill your glass with fresh ice
07
Strain cleanly
Strain into your glass
Why it mattersPour through the strainer so the spent shaker ice stays behind.
08
Top gently
Top with 15 ml dry red wine
- Dry red wine
09
Finish the drink
Finish it — add a lemon slice

Know your drink

About the New York Sour

An Old Fashioned, Whiskey Sour and sparkling whiskey highball in a warm library bar.

A sour in two halves

The wine float is older than the name. Nineteenth-century American bar books describe sours topped with claret, and the drink circulated as a Continental Sour well before New York got the credit. Nobody has convincingly documented when or why the name changed, so treat the geography as a label rather than an origin story.

The float works on density. A shaken sour carrying 22 ml of sugar syrup is heavier than wine, so the wine sits on top until movement or melting ice pulls it under. Skip the syrup and the layers merge immediately. That's also why the effect reads better in a rocks glass than a coupe: the ice gives the wine something to catch on.

Common questions

New York Sour FAQ

How do I stop the wine from sinking straight in?

Pour it slowly over the back of a barspoon held just above the surface, and make sure the sour underneath is properly cold and properly diluted. Warm, undiluted liquid mixes far too readily. Ice in the glass helps as well, catching the wine on its way down.

Does it have to be port?

No. Most versions call for a dry red, and a fruity Shiraz or Malbec floats just as happily; port is the sweeter modern habit. Dry wine gives sharper contrast against the sugar below. Port gives more weight and a longer finish, at the cost of some tension.

Am I meant to stir it before drinking?

Don't, at least not at first. The point is that the layers meet on their own as you drink, so the last third tastes noticeably different from the first. If you'd rather have it uniform, one stir turns it into a perfectly decent claret sour.

Will bourbon work instead?

It will, but rye is the better fit. Rye's spice and dryness stand up to the wine, whereas bourbon's sweetness stacked on port's sweetness leaves a drink with no edges anywhere. If bourbon is what you own, float a dry red rather than port and cut the syrup.

What ingredients are in a New York Sour?

A classic New York Sour calls for 60 ml (2 oz) Rye whiskey, 22 ml (0.75 oz) Fresh lemon juice, 22 ml (0.75 oz) Simple syrup, 15 ml (0.5 oz) Dry red wine. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

How strong is a New York Sour?

A standard New York Sour is roughly 24% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it spirit-forward — closer to a Martini than to a beer, so sip it slowly.

Is a New York Sour shaken or stirred?

A New York Sour is shaken — the rule of thumb is to shake anything with citrus juice. About 13 seconds with plenty of ice chills and dilutes it correctly.

Sharpen the technique