What’s bright green, tart and sweetly refreshing? The Midori Sour.
The Sour is a pretty common cocktail. Lemon or lime juices, sometimes both, are shaken up with a base spirit and an egg white to create a foamy, smooth and thirst quenching tipple. This drink is famously made with whiskey, but other liquors like gin, vodka and rum are all used in popular variations. Sometimes they’re made without egg white, and still manage to keep a nice amount of foam after being shaken up over ice. However you mix these up for yourself, they’re always guaranteed to hit the spot.
Tonight’s drink is a Sour, and a very interesting one at that. It looks a little more exotic than most, and is prepared a little differently too. The Midori Sour uses the Japanese melon liqueur that gave this cocktail its name, and also gives it its distinctive, neon green color. While Midori has been enjoyed in Japan since 1964, Americans weren’t introduced to the spirit until 1978. The Midori Sour became popular on the club scene throughout the 1980s due to its neon look and sweet taste.
During the craft cocktail movement of the 2000s, the Midori Sour fell out of favor with club goers and bar patrons. In 2017, The New York Times referred to it as a “trashy disco drink”. Ouch. Suntory, the company that produces Midori, changed the recipe around 2013. A little less sweet and with more balanced melon notes, the Midori Sour soon found itself becoming the life of many a party once again.
So the next time you’re out dancing and you see these bright, almost glowing green beverages, make sure you treat yourself to a few. Like the television commercial once proclaimed, “disco’s back and it’s hotter than ever!”
What Is Sweet and Sour Mix?
Sweet and sour mix is simple to make, and if you prep a bottle of it for yourself, can be stored in your fridge and used in any number of drinks. Just combine one part lemon juice and one part lime juice with two parts simple syrup. Shake it up and store in a mason jar or resealable bottle.
What Is The Best Alcohol to use In a Midori Sour?
You can’t have a Midori Sour without using Midori. So make sure you have some. Other recipes also call for an ounce of vodka added to this drink, which is optional and adds some extra bite. Try this mixture out both ways to see which one you prefer.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 ounces Midori melon liqueur
- 1 ounce sweet-and-sour mix
- 2 ounces Sprite or 7UP or any lemon-lime soda
- Maraschino cherry and orange slice for garnish
Instructions
- Add the Midori and the sweet-sour mix into a cocktail shaker.
- Add ice into the shaker, and shake it vigorously.
- Strain into a glass half-filled with ice.
- Top it with the lemon-lime soda.
- Stir the contents briefly to mix them up.
- Garnish with a cherry and orange slice.
Nutrition
What kind of glassware and garnish is used?
You’ll want to drink your Midori Sour from a Collins glass filled with ice and garnished with a maraschino cherry.
What can You Substitute for Sweet and Sour Mix?
Squirt is a grapefruit flavored soda, and with its tart and tangy taste makes a great substitute for sweet and sour mix when you’re in a bind.
Midori Sour Variations
So many Sours out there, your mouth is watering just thinking about the possibilities. With the simple and versatile combination of citrus and sugar, all you need to have a tasty time tonight is a cocktail shaker filled with ice and a bottle of your favorite spirit. When in doubt, have a Sour. And if you can’t decide on one, let these recipes from Twist & Toast get the train rolling.
Amaretto Stone Sour – Orange and almond flavors combine for this delightful dram.
Pisco Sour – Need something slightly different? Let this Peruvian spirit relax you tonight.
Gin Sour – Simple, crisp and herbaceous, this sweet and sour cocktail tastes as elegant as it looks.
Sweet & Sour Mix – Need a proper recipe to make your homemade mixture? Try out ours.
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