The 451 at Grandstaff & Stein (Photo by Jay Paul)
Liquor, citrus, sugar: the ingredients for a sour. It’s a potent little poem, one used throughout the world for the last few hundred years. The sour’s earliest iteration was a mix of rum and lime juice, created by sailors to solve the twin problems of too little potable water on board (yes, they drank liquor to hydrate) and frequent cases of scurvy. The British Navy enjoyed this concoction throughout the 17th and 18th centuries and popularized it as grog. In the mid-1800s, whiskey and brandy versions swapping lime for lemon began appearing on bar menus.
Lots of drinks are sours — so many, in fact, that it is helpful to specify when ordering by saying “daiquiri,” “Collins,” “caipirinha” and so on. That distinction helps clarify the desired liquor, whether water (or sparkling water) will be added and how the elements should work together. Our list of local favorites highlights two classic versions and two riffs.
The 451
Sometimes there is a cocktail that is all the things: Enter the 451. The mezcal-spiked sour features a pineapple-habanero shrub that blasts it into wildly flavorful territory. Sour. Sweet. Spicy. Smoky.
Temple of Salt
Egg whites are often included in sours to add a silky-smooth texture, and the Temple of Salt at Kismet is a bourbon-bottomed stunner: Green chartreuse and chile layer nicely between lime and honey in a lightly herbaceous, froth-topped delight.
Bee’s Knees
This Midlothian restaurant serves a well-balanced shortlist of drinks that speak to a confident bartender’s love for old-school mixology. Bombay Sapphire gin and their house honey simple syrup fuse into a delectable, golden, easy-sipping Bee’s Knees.
Tiki John’s Perfect Daiquiri
You want a real-deal daiquiri? Tiki John’s Perfect Daiquiri says it all. Balance is the defining characteristic of a daiquiri, and this one from the recently opened bar delivers.
