The Ted Perez Cocktail of the Week is the Pisco Sour, a drink that's roots date back to the days of Philips Dos y Tres. Bookniks will tell you around the time Spaniards brought the grape to Europe in the 17th Century, the King of Spain outlawed wine, thus forcing the locals to conceive a different, and much more potent, kind of alcohol [yeah, no grapes gave birth to Shine...right]. In honor of this inspired discovery, Ted Perez sampled the signature pisco mix this with four different labels.
Ted Perez's Variation:
4 oz pisco
2 oz lemon juice
1/2 egg white
1 heaping bartender's spoon of powdered sugar
3 cubes of ice
1 heaping bartender's spoon of powdered sugar
3 cubes of ice
Blend with care - your goal is not to make a Slurpee, pulse so chunks remain and you obtain a healthy froth
Sift your blend into pre-chilled glasses
Top with 3 dashes of Fee Brothers bitters
Barsol Pisco:
This variation had a fairly large volume of foam on the top, making it difficult to reach the drink (suggesting we reduce the number of egg whites). Good balanced taste overall with a pronounced lemon flavor. Overall: B+
Montesierpe Pisco:
This variation was still frothy and much more sour than the last. There was a significant 'bite' to the Pisco that took away considerably from the drinkability. The Montesierpe masked most of the other flavors in the drink. Overall: C
Ocucaje Pisco:
A reduction in the amount of egg whites (two egg whites in three drinks instead of one each) resulted in a much smaller and more manageable volume of froth. The taste is much smoother and less tangy than the Montesierpe and had slightly better drinkability than the Barsol. An excellent variation that one could "drink all day". Overall: A-
Capel Pisco Reservado:
This variation was the most balanced of the four. Using 2 egg whites for 5 drinks [unexpected guests do bear wonderful gifts] also resulted in a perfect volume of foam. Sniff-to-swallow, the combination was nicely balanced and distinct while not straying too far from our expected experience. A plus to the bottle, that black Peruvian number is legit. Overall: A
The Verdict:
While the Ocucaje and Capel Reservado were easily distinguishable from the Montesierpe and Barsol on drinkability, the two premium labels were very difficult to rank against each other due to their smooth finish. The Capel Reservado would have to be the favorite based off of the perfect level of 'tart', but reducing the lemon juice slightly with the Ocucaje variation may have yielded a similar result. Barsol was also a good Pisco, but the Montesierpe was much too strong and lacking in flavor.