ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour Recipe: How to Make It at Home

The ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour is a spicy twist on a classic Sour. Made with ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ – our chili pepper flavored vodka – together with fresh lemon juice, simple syrup, and either egg white or aquafaba, shaken and strained over a large ice cube.

The surprise heat of ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ is the kind of thing that stops people mid-conversation — and gives them something to talk about for the rest of the night, while the evening does its own thing.

ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour Ingredients

This recipe is written in parts, so it scales easily for a group using any measuring tool  — a jigger, a measuring cup, or whatever you’ve got on hand.

• 2 parts ABSOLUT® TABASCO™
• 1¼ parts lemon juice
• ¾ part simple syrup
• ⅓ part egg white or aquafaba
• Lemon zest, to garnish

Egg white gives the drink its classic silky foam head; aquafaba — the liquid from a can of chickpeas — does the same job if you want an egg-free version.

Making a batch for a large group? Just multiply every measurement by however many times you want to scale the recipe, and the ratio stays the same.

How to Make an ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour, Step by Step

Here’s how to make an ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour in three simple steps.

1. Shake it up. Add the ABSOLUT® TABASCO™, lemon juice, simple syrup, and egg white or aquafaba to a shaker, fill with ice, and shake hard for approx. 10–15 seconds.
2. Strain into a rocks glass over a single large ice cube. A big cube melts slower than smaller ones.
3. Garnish with a twist of lemon zest. Peel a strip of lemon skin and twist it over the glass to release the oils — the citrus oil adds the final layer of flavor.

Watch how to make an ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour:

What Is a Sour Cocktail?

The ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour belongs to one of the oldest cocktail families around: the Sour. The formula is simple and has barely changed in over 150 years — a base spirit, a citrus juice, and a sweetener, often finished with egg white to give the drink its signature frothy head.

It traces back to the Whiskey Sour, first documented in a 19th-century bartender’s guide, with roots even earlier in the British Navy’s practice of mixing spirits with citrus on long voyages.

The ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour just takes that same formula and turns up the heat — literally.

How to Serve an ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour

To serve an ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour, we recommend a rocks glass or a short tumbler and a single large ice cube — no specialty glassware required — whatever glass you have at home will work just fine.

For the finishing touch, cut or peel the lemon zest however you like, whether you’re going for a thin strip, a twist, a coin, or a wedge. There’s no wrong way — it all depends on the level of effort you want to make.

Tips for Making an ABSOLUT® TABASCO™ Vodka Sour

One ingredient choice makes a real difference to the taste — the rest is just about using what you’ve got.

• Use fresh lemon juice, not bottled. A citrus press or citrus elbow make it faster, but a fork and a bit of elbow grease works too. The acidity and brightness you get from fresh lemons can’t be replicated.
• No cocktail shaker? A mason jar with a tight-fitting lid works just as well.
• No Hawthorne strainer? A standard kitchen strainer, or pouring carefully by hand, will do the job.

Looking for more drink-spiration? Check out 5 cocktails to make with ABSOLUT® TABASCO™.

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