The Only Type Of Lemonade To Mix With Bourbon For The Best Taste Possible

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When life gives you lemons, you should really try getting some bourbon in there, because lemon juice alone is a pretty niche preference. Apologies for the hackneyed humor, and there's yet more bad news to come before the good: you'll actually want a full-on lemonade to really let that amber liquid sing, and the best variety is homemade. Sure, it's more time-consuming than cracking open a can of nostalgic old frozen juice, but following your own recipe will give you something even better than convenience: control.

A bourbon lemonade is technically a simple mixed drink, rather than a more fancy, elaborate cocktail, but it's still depths more dynamic than something like an (also great!) vodka soda. That's thanks to the fact that a bourbon lemonade is technically a four-ingredient tipple, accounting for the bare-minimum ingredients in its titular citrus mix. So, because that half plays such an equal part in the final product, you want the lemonade to be as good as the bourbon it's going to meet. And we know you know how to buy good bourbon.

With store-bought off the table, you'll want some tips on how to make the best lemonade. A whole bunch of fresh lemons (six to 10 should do it) are compulsory. Anything starting to dry will obviously produce less juice, and it'll be a waste of wrist strength trying to wrench out those evaporated drops. Rolling your lemons on the counter before you slice can start breaking down the fruit to release more juice. Once you've extracted the liquid, many recipes will call for around 6 cups of water and about 1 cup of sugar. Start with half of those amounts of each, and stir in the rest to taste. Odds are you'll want most of the water, but you might find that it tastes better with less sugar, particularly if you're planning to use a bourbon that's on the sweeter side.

Now, as much as we know how everybody loves halving and juicing lemons all afternoon, we also have a cheat code that still keeps your lemonade homemade. Santa Cruz organic lemon juice is confirmed as good as hand-squeezed. (Its lime counterpart is also tops for margaritas.) Five to six lemons produce about 1 cup of juice, so you'll just tip in about half of the bottle, instead. Stir it all together in a classic glass pitcher with a darling wooden spoon, and you've got enough to serve bourbon lemonade for days — literally about seven of them, which is how long homemade lemonade lasts in the refrigerator.