Classic cocktail · Guided recipe

Whiskey Daisy

Bourbon's corn sweetness meets lemon head-on here, with grenadine and a little orange liqueur filling the gap between them. Daisies were a bar standard in the 1870s, half a century before anyone thought to call the tequila one a Margarita.

Preparation~3 minEasyStrengthStrongabout 29% ABVMethodShaken9 guided stepsIngredients4Short (rocks) glass

Sour

In the glassBourbon · Fresh lemon juice · Grenadine · Triple sec / Cointreau

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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.

Bourbon60 ml
Triple sec / Cointreau8 ml
Fresh lemon juice22 ml
Grenadine15 ml

Start making

From bottle to glass

Method

01
Measure into the shaker
Pour 60 ml bourbon into your shaker
- Bourbon
02
Measure into the shaker
Add 22 ml fresh lemon juice
- Fresh lemon juice
03
Measure into the shaker
Add 15 ml grenadine
- Grenadine
04
Measure into the shaker
Add 8 ml triple sec / cointreau
- Triple sec / Cointreau
05
Ice the shaker
Fill the shaker with ice
Why it mattersFill it right up — more ice chills faster with less watering down.
06
Seal and shake
Seal and shake hard
Why it mattersCold hands mean it’s working. Shake until the tin frosts over.
07
Ice the glass
Fill your glass with fresh ice
08
Strain cleanly
Strain into your glass
Why it mattersPour through the strainer so the spent shaker ice stays behind.
09
Finish the drink
Finish it — add a lemon slice

Know your drink

About the Whiskey Daisy

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

Older than the Margarita

Daisies were bar furniture in the 1870s and 1880s, decades before anyone put tequila in one. American manuals of the period list them across every base spirit, generally over shaved ice in a small tumbler with a fizz of soda on top. Grenadine arrived later as the sweetener of choice and handed the whole family its color.

Eight milliliters of triple sec looks like nothing and does a surprising amount of work. Orange peel oil bridges the gap between the lemon's sharpness and the heavy fruit of the grenadine. Leave it out and the drink splits into sour at the front and sweet at the back with a hole in the middle. Cointreau is the safe pour; a dry curaçao works if you nudge the grenadine up.

Common questions

Whiskey Daisy FAQ

What makes a drink a daisy?

Spirit, citrus, and a sweetener that is a liqueur or a flavored syrup rather than plain sugar. Grenadine and orange curaçao are the classic pairing. Gin, rum and brandy daisies all existed alongside this one, and margarita is simply the Spanish word for daisy.

How do I make grenadine at home?

Equal weights of unsweetened pomegranate juice and sugar, stirred cold until it dissolves. No heat, which dulls the fruit. A spoonful of pomegranate molasses sharpens it, and 15 ml of vodka per cup keeps it drinkable in the fridge for about a month.

Should there be soda water in it?

Older daisies finish with a short top of soda in a larger glass. This build leaves it out and stays a proper sour, which is denser and more whiskey-forward. If you want the long version, keep every proportion the same and add 45 ml of soda over fresh ice.

What ingredients are in a Whiskey Daisy?

A classic Whiskey Daisy calls for 60 ml (2 oz) Bourbon, 22 ml (0.75 oz) Fresh lemon juice, 15 ml (0.5 oz) Grenadine, 8 ml (0.25 oz) Triple sec / Cointreau. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

How strong is a Whiskey Daisy?

A standard Whiskey Daisy is roughly 29% 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 Whiskey Daisy shaken or stirred?

A Whiskey Daisy 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.

What glass do you serve a Whiskey Daisy in?

Serve a Whiskey Daisy in a rocks glass (old fashioned glass), over fresh ice cubes.

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