Glass of rum-based alcoholic lemon mojito cocktail with crushed ice, mint leaves and a blue and white striped drinking straw.
FOOD NEWS
One Simple Ingredient Can Resurrect Horribly Sour Cocktails
By Elizabeth Thorn
Bag of sugar with metal scoop
Adding sugar can help balance the acidity of a cocktail and give it the hint of sweetness needed for the base flavors to shine. It can also reduce the spiciness in a recipe.
Sugar cubes balanced on a spoon
In mixology, a substance's relative sweetness compared to sucrose (table sugar) is measured on the sweetness index, which helps you balance different flavors proportionally.
Honey wand with dripping honey
For example, table sugar has an index of 1.0, agave has an index of 1.4, and honey sits closer on the scale to sucrose with an index of 1.1.
Person pumping syrup into a small cup
One of the best sugars for fixing drinks is a simple syrup (sugar dissolved in water at a 1:1 ratio), which adds sweetness to drinks without giving a grainy texture.
Yellow cocktail with citrus fruits and straw
Typically, an ounce of simple syrup is enough to balance out one ounce of citrus juice, but you don't want to cancel out the other flavors entirely.
Maple syrup in a bottle
You can also use maple syrup for a more complex taste, but using flavored syrups can affect the drink's flavor profile.
Gourmet cocktail with orange
A few classic recipes that often require a dash of sugar to balance their flavor include the whiskey sour, margarita, daiquiri, and sour mix-based cocktails.