Cocktail guide
How to make an amaretto sour with aquafaba
The amaretto sour always arrives with a bit more generosity than the rest: more liqueur in the shaker, more roundness in the glass, and a white head that stops the drink from slipping too far into sweetness. With 20 ml of VERY AQUAFABA in place of the egg white, that balance stays intact. You still get the almond-rich base, the lemon cutting through it, and the soft cap on top that makes the whole drink feel finished. Below is the full build, the two-shake method, and what to watch when the foam looks weaker than the drink deserves. Updated: .
What goes in the shaker
- 60 ml amaretto
- 20 ml lemon juice
- 10 ml vanilla syrup
- 20 ml VERY AQUAFABA, chilled
- An old fashioned glass, and a slice of dried lemon for the garnish
The 60 ml pour is what sets this spec apart from the other sours here.
How to shake it
- Pour the amaretto, the lemon, the vanilla syrup and the chilled aquafaba into the shaker.
- Shake hard without ice: this is where the head is built.
- Add 8 to 10 ice cubes and shake again to chill and dilute the drink.
- Strain into the old fashioned glass.
- Lay the dried lemon slice on the foam and send the drink out straight away.
There are only two technique points to keep consistent: use the aquafaba chilled, and keep the ice for the second shake.
Tips for balancing an amaretto sour with aquafaba
The amaretto is the number that changes the pace of this drink. At 60 ml per order, a busy service gets through the liqueur much faster than the aquafaba. The vanilla syrup stays at 10 ml, while VERY AQUAFABA stays at the same 20 ml dose used across these sour recipes.
Batch the amaretto, lemon and vanilla syrup before doors open. Then each order needs the batched base plus 20 ml of chilled aquafaba before the dry shake. Keep the aquafaba out of the bottle so the foam is still built fresh in each shaker, and keep the amaretto sour process sheet in the bar book for the checks.
Fixing a flat amaretto sour
| What you see | Why | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| A thin head from the first drink | The ice went in before the dry shake | Dry shake first, ice second |
| A foam that rises slowly and stays slack | The aquafaba sat out at room temperature | Keep the pack in the fridge until the shake |
| Good at the bar, flat at the table | The drink waited on the pass | Shake to order and serve at once |
How often do you pour amaretto sours?
Start with one question: will you pour 50 amaretto sours within 3 to 4 days? That is what a 1L Tetrapak gives you at 20 ml per drink, and the opened pack stays at 2 to 6 °C during that time.
For a slower-moving menu, powder is easier to hold between services. A 200g pouch makes 150 drinks at 1.3g per drink, made up with 20 ml of water. Use the amaretto sour quantity calculator to turn your expected covers into the full shopping list for the night.
Where to buy VERY AQUAFABA
Please drink responsibly
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