How to Make a Whiskey Sour Without a Shaker (or Egg White, or Syrup)

A Whiskey Sour needs to be shaken, but it does not need a cocktail shaker. Anything with a lid that seals and room for ice will do the job — a mason jar, a protein shaker, a blender bottle, a large leftover jam jar. The drink is older than the modern shaker anyway: Jerry Thomas's 1887 recipe simply says to fill the glass with shaved ice, "shake up and strain."

This guide covers the kitchen-cupboard versions of the tools, and what to do when the problem is not the shaker but a missing ingredient — no simple syrup, no fresh lemon, no egg white. The proper technique, for when you have the kit, is in how to shake a Whiskey Sour.

The Short Version

• A jar works. A 16 oz mason jar with a screw lid is the best stand-in; a protein shaker or blender bottle is close behind.
• Strain it through a tea strainer, a small sieve or a slotted lid.
• No syrup: stir about a tablespoon (3 teaspoons) of fine sugar into the lemon juice until it dissolves, then shake — the 1887 method.
• No fresh lemon: don't fake it. Make an Old Fashioned.
• No egg white: leave it out (the IBA lists it as optional), or use 1 oz aquafaba.

What Works Instead of a Shaker

Whatever you use, leave at least a third of the jar empty. The ice needs room to move, and a sour gets its texture from the hard collisions a full shake gives. A jar packed to the lid just sloshes. When you are ready for the real thing, shakers and strainers are in the shop.

How to Make a Whiskey Sour in a Jar

1. Chill your glass. Fill a rocks glass with ice, or put a coupe in the freezer.
2. Build in the jar. 2 oz rye, ¾ oz fresh lemon juice, ¾ oz 1:1 simple syrup — the standard ratio, explained in Whiskey Sour ratios. No jigger? 1 oz is 2 tablespoons, so ¾ oz is 1½ tablespoons.
3. Add ice. Fill the jar about half to two-thirds with ice.
4. Seal and shake hard for 10 to 15 seconds, holding the lid down, until the jar is cold to the touch and frosted.
5. Strain. Hold a tea strainer or small sieve over the glass and pour, leaving the jar's ice behind. Over fresh ice for the rocks serve, or into the chilled coupe.
6. Garnish with a lemon wheel or a twist. More in Whiskey Sour garnish.

Egg White Without a Shaker

Egg white is the hardest part to do without proper tools, because it needs vigorous shaking to foam. A jar can manage it: add everything including ½ oz pasteurized egg white, seal it, and shake hard without ice for about ten seconds — the dry shake — then add ice and shake again. Hold the lid down, because without ice inside the seal is weaker. A blender bottle's whisk ball helps here.

There are easier routes. Jeffrey Morgenthaler froths the egg white with an immersion blender before shaking with ice and says it works better than hand-shaking; a small milk frother or a whisk in a bowl does the same job. Or skip the egg altogether — the IBA lists it as optional and the 1887 Thomas recipe uses none. Pasteurized whites, aquafaba and the safety question are in the egg white guide.

No Simple Syrup

This is the easiest gap to fill, and the historical method. Jerry Thomas's 1887 Whiskey Sour used no syrup: it called for "1 large tea-spoonful of powdered white sugar, dissolved in a little Seltzer or Apollinaris water" in the glass, then the lemon juice and whiskey. At home, put the sugar in the jar with the lemon juice and stir or swirl until it dissolves before the whiskey and ice go in — about 3 teaspoons (1 tablespoon) of fine sugar dissolved in a splash of water stands in for ¾ oz of simple syrup; adjust to taste. Superfine sugar dissolves fastest; granulated works with patience. Undissolved sugar sinks and the drink tastes sour until the last sip.

If you have five minutes, make syrup properly: equal volumes of sugar and room-temperature water, shaken in a jar until clear — no heat needed for 1:1. Honey and maple also work if you convert the amounts — see the syrup guide.

No Fresh Lemon

This is the one fallback we don't recommend. Difford's specifies freshly squeezed lemon juice and the IBA fresh lemon juice (PUNCH simply lists lemon juice), and the lemon is a third of the drink's flavor. Bottled juice loses the aroma that makes a sour taste of lemon, and commercial sour mix is what sent the Whiskey Sour into its post-Prohibition "dark ages." If there is no lemon in the house, make a drink that doesn't need one: an Old Fashioned uses the same whiskey and sugar with bitters instead of citrus. Why fresh matters, and how long squeezed juice keeps, is in the lemon juice guide.

If you have other citrus, use it to make a different sour, not a fake Whiskey Sour. Grapefruit and rye make a Blinker; lime is the citrus of the Daiquiri and the Margarita, the sour template's other members.

No Egg White

Then make it without. The no-egg Whiskey Sour is the original — Jerry Thomas's 1887 recipe has none, the IBA lists it as optional, and one of PUNCH's 2017 judges preferred the drink without it. If you want the foam, aquafaba — the liquid from a can of chickpeas — is the cupboard substitute: 1 oz per drink, dry shaken 10–12 seconds, per Tales of the Cocktail's vegan Whiskey Sour. Use low- or no-sodium chickpeas. A few dashes of Angostura on top hide the faint chickpea note.

Making a Round

A large jar makes two at a time: double everything, use a 32 oz jar, and shake a few seconds longer. Beyond two, shake in batches — a jar packed with four drinks' worth of liquid has no room left for the ice to work. For a crowd, a house sour mix of equal parts fresh lemon juice and simple syrup, made the same day, saves measuring: 1½ oz per drink with 2 oz of rye. The rest of the technique set is in the Workshop, and the bottles in the Bottle Library.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you make a Whiskey Sour without a shaker?

Yes. Use any jar with a tight lid and room for ice — a mason jar, protein shaker or blender bottle. Shake hard for 10 to 15 seconds until frosted, then strain through a tea strainer into your glass.

Can I stir a Whiskey Sour instead of shaking it?

You can, but it comes out flat and under-chilled. Shaking aerates the lemon and gives the drink its texture. Even Jerry Thomas's 1887 recipe says to shake it.

How do I make a Whiskey Sour without simple syrup?

Dissolve fine sugar in the lemon juice before adding the whiskey and ice — Jerry Thomas's 1887 method used a large teaspoonful of powdered sugar dissolved in a little seltzer. Or shake equal parts sugar and water in a jar for a minute to make 1:1 syrup.

Can I make a Whiskey Sour with bottled lemon juice?

It makes a noticeably worse drink. Difford's and the IBA both specify fresh lemon juice, and bottled juice loses the aroma. If there's no fresh lemon, make an Old Fashioned instead.

What can I use instead of egg white in a Whiskey Sour?

Nothing at all — the classic has none — or 1 oz aquafaba (chickpea liquid), dry shaken 10–12 seconds. Fee Foam is a bottled alternative.

How do I foam egg white without a shaker?

Dry shake it hard in a sealed jar for about ten seconds, then add ice and shake again. Jeffrey Morgenthaler froths egg white with an immersion blender first; a milk frother or whisk works the same way.