Classic cocktail · Guided recipe

Vodka Sour

Neutral spirit means nothing is arguing with the lemon, which makes this the sour at its plainest. Use fresh juice or don't bother. Bottled lemon has nowhere to hide in a drink built from three things.

Preparation~2 minEasyStrengthStrongabout 25% ABVMethodShaken8 guided stepsIngredients3Short (rocks) glass

Sour

In the glassVodka · Fresh lemon juice · Simple syrup

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Make it with guidanceOne clear action at a time, with timers built in.

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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.

Vodka60 ml
Fresh lemon juice22 ml
Simple syrup15 ml

Start making

From bottle to glass

Method

01
Measure into the shaker
Pour 60 ml vodka into your shaker
- Vodka
02
Measure into the shaker
Add 22 ml fresh lemon juice
- Fresh lemon juice
03
Measure into the shaker
Add 15 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
Finish the drink
Finish it — add a lemon slice and a cocktail cherry

Know your drink

About the Vodka Sour

A copper mug, Espresso Martini and clear vodka highball against evening city lights.

The shape of a sour

Every sour on earth runs on one skeleton: two parts spirit, one part citrus, three quarters of a part sugar. In millilitres that is 60, 30 and 22. This drink sits just inside the frame at 60, 22 and 15, which reads noticeably drier. Learn the shape and you can build a whiskey sour, a daiquiri or a sidecar without looking anything up.

Sweetness is the one number where personal taste genuinely lives. Someone who finds 15 ml austere is not wrong, and a bar making forty of these an hour will drift toward 20. Make it twice, once at each, and decide for yourself. Nobody else's figure is going to match your lemons.

Common questions

Vodka Sour FAQ

Is the egg white optional in a base this neutral?

No, but it changes the drink meaningfully. Half an ounce gives you foam and a rounder, softer texture that pulls the edge off the lemon. Leave it out and you get something leaner and sharper that shows the citrus more clearly. Both versions are legitimate.

Mine came out sour and thin. What now?

Push the syrup to 20 ml before you change anything else. Lemons vary enormously by season, and a sharp winter one will bulldoze 15 ml of sugar without noticing. If it still tastes thin after that, the problem is dilution rather than sweetness.

Is this one worth mixing ahead of time?

Yes, and it is the sensible move. Combine vodka, juice and syrup in proportion, refrigerate, then stir in roughly 20 percent water to stand in for the melt you would normally get. Pour over fresh cubes and nobody can tell it was made in advance.

How is this different from a Lemon Drop?

A Lemon Drop adds orange liqueur and usually a sugared rim, then arrives in a stemmed glass with no ice at all. It is sweeter and closer to dessert. This one stays on the rocks and keeps the sugar honest.

What ingredients are in a Vodka Sour?

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

How strong is a Vodka Sour?

A standard Vodka Sour is roughly 25% 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 Vodka Sour shaken or stirred?

A Vodka 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