Simple, effervescent and strong, the Whiskey Highball is an elegant and classic tipple.
It doesn’t matter what mood you’re in, whiskey is always a good idea. On the rocks, straight up, or as a simple shot, the golden brown, sweetened sipper can warm you up on a cold evening, or relax you after a long, hard day. A few fingers poured from your favorite bottle and the day suddenly becomes easier. You might even want a second glass as you throw a movie on.
The Whiskey Highball, tonight’s cocktail, is a popular beverage, and one that helps to elongate your liquor drinking experience. For me, I have to be in a specific mood to drink my whiskey straight, or even with a large ice cube. Adding only one other ingredient, club soda, will lighten up your drink without sacrificing the flavor of the spirit. Each sip will be less robust, but the bubbly refreshment from the soda adds an extra layer of thirst-quenching cold.
Many folks think that adding club soda and ice makes the whiskey in this mixture easier to drink, and more palatable to those who don’t enjoy straight alcohol. But that’s not actually the case. The bubbles and flavorless aspect of the club soda are meant to help accentuate the notes in the spirit you use. While the soda does lighten it up a little, it fans the flavor out rather than thinning it.
Emerging in the 19th century in England, the Whiskey Highball was born from combining two drinking nicknames. Back then it was reported that whiskey drinks were called “balls” and served in tall or “high” glasses. It seemed that the moniker naturally and organically came about. Another theory is that this cocktail takes its name from a railroad signal of the era: two short whistles followed by a long one. And this concoction consists of two ounces of whiskey, topped with a long pour of soda.
You don’t need to know all of this cocktail’s history to enjoy one, but knowing a little can only deepen each sip you take.
What Is The Best Whiskey To Use In A Whiskey Highball?
The whiskey you use in your Highball will more than likely be one of your favorites. I enjoy a smooth and intense rye whiskey, either a bottle of High West or Bulleit. I like my spirits to have a little bite, rather than a buttery texture when mixing with club soda… the fizz complements the spiky notes quite nicely, giving you a balanced and bubbly beverage. For a more scotch-like experience, give a Japanese whiskey a try.
Ingredients
- 2 ounces whiskey
- 6 ounces club soda
- 1 lemon slice to garnish, optional
Instructions
- Start by filling a highball glass with ice.
- Pour your preferred whiskey over the ice.
- Complete the glass with the club soda.
- Stir lightly to combine and add a lemon slice as garnish.
Nutrition
What Glassware And Garnish Is Used?
When making yourself a Whiskey Highball, there’s only one proper style of glassware to use, a highball glass. The slender and tall shape will keep your ice from melting too quickly and diluting your drink.
Can You Use Ginger Ale In Place Of The Club Soda?
If you prefer a more flavorful dram, you can use ginger ale in place of the club soda. This will add more calories to your drink, however, and is considered a separate cocktail altogether, a Whiskey Ginger, sometimes referred to as an Irish Buck.
Similar Drinks to the Whiskey Highball
If simplicity is important to you, you’ll want some drinks to have handy to reflect that. The Whiskey Highball exemplifies this concept, but there are other recipes in the cocktail world that follow this example. Twist & Toast has some excellent and delicious elixirs that take no time to whip up, but will help the clock tick a little slower for you.
- Tequila Soda – This two-ingredient drink adds a splash of lime juice to help amplify the flavor of the spirit.
- Vodka Soda – This crisp and clean-tasting sipper is the perfect way to spend a Saturday afternoon.
- Gin Rickey – Like a fizzy lemonade, but with the juniper-forward freshness of gin.
- Vodka Spritzer – Lemon and lime juice combine with club soda in this citrus-flavored cocktail.
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