Pisco Sour

Cocktail
Peruvian Pisco Sour
Type	Cocktail
Base spirit	Pisco
Served	Straight up: chilled, without ice
Standard drinkware	Old fashioned glass
Commonly used ingredients	2 fl oz (8 parts) Pisco 1 fl oz (4 parts) Lime juice 3/4 fl oz (3 part) Simple syrup 1 Egg white 1 dash Bitters
Preparation	Shake hard or blend with ice and strain into glass. The bitters are an aromatic garnish topping the finished drink, put on top of pisco sour foam.
Recipe adapted from The Joy of Mixology by Gary Regan

A Pisco Sour is a cocktail typical of western South American cuisine. The drink's name is a mixture of the Quechua word Pisco ([Bird] Error: {{Lang-xx}}: text has italic markup (help)) and the term Sour (in reference to the mixed drink family of the same name). The Peruvian Pisco Sour requires the use of Peruvian Pisco as the base liquor and the addition of lime (or lemon) juice, syrup, ice, egg white, and Angostura bitters. The Chilean version is similar, but uses Chilean Pisco, sugar instead of syrup, and excludes the bitter. Other variants of the cocktail include those created with fruits like pineapple or plants such as coca leaves.

The cocktail originated in Peru, invented in the Peruvian capital of Lima by Victor Vaughn Morris in the early 1920s. An American bartender, Morris left his native United States in 1903 to work in Cerro de Pasco, a city in central Peru. In 1916, he inaugurated in Lima his saloon, Morris' Bar, which became a popular spot for the Peruvian Upper class and English-speaking foreigners. Coincidentally, the oldest mention of the Pisco Sour so far found comes from an advertisement from Morris' Bar published in a 1924 English newspaper from the Chilean port of Valparaiso.

The Pisco Sour underwent several changes until Mario Bruiget, a Peruvian bartender working at Morris' Bar, created the modern Peruvian recipe of the cocktail in the latter part of the 1920s by adding Angostura bitters and egg whites to the mix. In Chile, historian Oreste Plath attributed the invention of the drink to Elliot Stubb, an English steward of a ship named Sunshine, whom allegedly mixed Key lime, syrup, and ice cubes to create the cocktail in a bar in the port city of Iquique in 1872. Nonetheless, the original source cited by Plath attributed Stubb the invention of the Whiskey Sour.

Both Chile and Peru claim ownership of the Pisco Sour and denominate it their national drink. Peru considers that both Pisco and the Pisco Sour should be considered exclusively Peruvian. However, Chile contests this claim and, in turn, also claims ownership over both alcoholic beverages. Partially as a result of this controversy, the Pisco Sour holds international attention as a topic of popular culture.

Etymology

The term Pisco Sour is made up of two word components, Sour and Pisco. Sour refers to mixed drinks which contain a base liquor (bourbon or whiskey), lemon or lime juice, egg white, and a sweetener. Common sweeteners are triple sec, simple syrup, grenadine, and pineapple juice.^[1]Pisco is a Quechua word which means "bird." Chilean linguist Rodolfo Lenz claims that the word was used all along the Pacific coast of the Americas from the Arauco Province in Chile to Guatemala. Nonetheless, Mario Ferreccio Podesta, another Chilean linguist, disputes the Quechua origin of the word and claims that the term pisco originates from mud containers used to transport the drink.^[2]

Regardless of the meaning of the name, the word as applied to the alcoholic beverage comes from the Peruvian port of Pisco. In the book Latin America and the Caribbean, historian Olwyn Blouet and political geographer Brian Blouet explain how vineyards developed in early Colonial Peru and how "in the second half of the sixteenth century" a market for the liquor developed thanks to the growth of mining in the Andes. Subsequent demand for a stronger drink caused Pisco and Ica to establish distilleries "to make wine into brandy," and the product ended up receiving the name of the port where it was distilled.^[3] This definition of the Pisco beverage's name as originary from the Peruvian port has also been accepted by institutions such as the Real Academia Española and the Concise Oxford English Dictionary.^[4][5]

History

Background

The roots of Pisco itself reach back to the 16th century and stem from Colonial rule. The Spaniards brought the grape to the Peruvian region from Europe, but the King of Spain banned wine in the 17th Century, forcing locals to concoct a different kind of alcohol from the grape.^[6]

Guillermo Toro Lira writes in his book Wings of Cherubs that Pisco Sour's antecedent was invented near the Plaza de Toros de Acho of Lima, in the Viceroyalty of Peru during the 18th century. At this time, Pisco was mixed with lemons, and received the name Punche (Spanish for Punch). This drink also served as the predecessor for the Californian Pisco punch, invented during the 20th century in the Bank Exchange Bar of San Francisco and which contains Pisco, lemon, and pineapple.^[7]Guillermo L. Toro-Lira (December 11, 2009). "Clarifying the legends from the history of the Pisco Sour". Piscopunch.com. Retrieved 2012-12-03.</ref>

Origin

Pisco Sour originated in Lima, Peru, created by American bartender Victor Vaughn Morris in the early 1920s. Morris was born in Salt Lake City, Utah, in the United States. In 1903, he traveled to Peru to work as a cashier in the Cerro de Pasco Railway Company. Then, in 1915, he moved to Lima and, on April 1, 1916, founded Morris' Bar. The saloon served as a gathering spot for the Peruvian Upper class and English-speaking foreigners. According to Peruvian researcher Guillermo Toro-Lira, among the notable individuals who attented Morris' Bar were Elmer Faucett (founder of the Faucett Perú airline), José Lindley (founder of the Corporación José R. Lindley S.A. and Inca Kola), Alfred L. Kroeber (notable cultural anthropologist), and Richard Halliburton (renown adventurer and cultural ambassador to Peru).^[8][9]

Morris' Bar, located in Boza street (close to the Plaza Mayor of Lima),^[10] served as a center of drink experimentation for Morris. Nicknamed Gringo, Victor Morris created the Pisco Sour as a variety of the Whiskey Sour, an alcholic beverage whose origin could be the then-Peruvian city of Iquique.^[11] Some discrepancy exists on the exact date when Gringo Morris made the popular cocktail. Master mixologist Dale DeGroff claims that the drink was invented in 1915,^[12] but other sources claim the drink was invented in the 1920s.^[13][14] Chilean newspaper El Mercurio especifically mentions that historians attribute the year of the drink's invention as 1922, adding that "according to historians [...] Morris one night surprised his friends with a new drink he called Pisco Sour, a formula which mixes the Peruvian Pisco with the American Sour."^[15]

The original recipe of the Pisco Sour, as invented by Morris, has not yet been found. According to Toro-Lira, "it is assumed that it was a crude mix of Pisco with lime juice and sugar, as it was the whiskey sour of those days." Part of the reason the cocktail's original recipe has not been found is because it kept changing, albeit it seems for the better as the bar's registry shows customers commented on the continuously improving taste of the drink.^[16] The last version of the cocktail's recipe was developed by Mario Bruiget, a Peruvian from Chincha Alta who worked under the apprenticeship of Morris starting on July 16, 1924. Bruiget's recipe added the Angostura bitters and egg whites to the mix.^[17]

The Pisco Sour attained rapid popularity. In his book Bitters, author Brad Thomas Parsons writes that "the registry at the Morris Bar was filled with high praise from visitors who raved about the signature drink."^[18] Toro-Lira states that in 1924, with the aid of Nelson Rounsevell (a friend Morris made in Cerro de Pasco), the bar advertised its locale and invention in Valparaiso, Chile. The advertisement featured in the Valparaiso newspaper South Pacific Mail, owned by Rounsevell, is thus far the oldest known mention of the Pisco Sour.^[19] Tatiana Perich, from Peruvian newspaper El Comercio, comments that by 1927 the bar had attained widspread notability for its cocktails. During this time, as a result of worsening health, Morris delegated most of the bartending to his employees.^[20]

Competition from nearby bars and Victor Morris' declining health led to the decline and ultimate fall of his enterprise. Hotel Bolivar (inaugurated on December 6, 1924) and Hotel Lima Country Club (inaugurated on February 1927) were among the nearby competitors whose bars took clientele away from Morris' Bar. In his investigation, Guillermo Toro-Lira discovered that Morris accused four of his former bartenders of intellectual theft after they left to work in one of these competing establishments. In 1929, Morris declared voluntary bankruptcy and closed his saloon. A few months later, on June 11, Victor Vaughn Morris died of Cirrosis.^[21][22]

Aftermath

During the 1930s the drink made its way into Californian bars of the United States, reaching as far north as the city of San Francisco.^[23] Back in Peru, Lima hotels continued the Pisco Sour cocktail tradition. After Victor Morris closed down his bar in 1929, Mario Bruiget found work as a bartender for the nearby Grand Hotel Maury. Bruiget took along with him his Pisco Sour recipe. The success of Bruiget in his new job apparently caused local Limean oral tradition to erroneously associate the Hotel Maury with the origin of the Pisco Sour.^[24]

During the 1940s and 1950s an oil bonanza in Peru attracted foreign attention to the country. In Lima, Hollywood stars such as Orson Wells and John Wayne drank the Pisco Sour offered in the Hotel Bolivar and Hotel Maury.^[25][26]

Preparation and variants

The preparation of the Pisco Sour differs between the Peruvian and Chilean versions of the cocktail. The Peruvian Pisco Sour cocktail is made by mixing Peruvian Pisco with lime juice, syrup, egg white, Angostura bitters (for garnish), and ice cubes.^[27] The Chilean Pisco Sour cocktail is made by mixing Chilean Pisco with lemon juice, powdered sugar, egg white, and ice cubes.^[28] According to Mark Spivak, food and wine expert, "there are significant differences between the two [Pisco] versions. Chilean pisco is mass-produced and can be adulterated before bottling; the Peruvian spirit is made in small batches in pot stills, and cannot be altered in any way before reaching the consumer."^[29]

In Chile, different spin-offs of the Pisco Sour recipe can be found, such as the Ají Sour (with a spicy green chili), Mango Sour (with mango juice), Sour de Campo (with ginger and honey), and Sour Hass (with avocados, pineapple, and mint).

In Peru, additional variations of the Pisco Sour can be found, combining some traditional Peruvian jungle fruits such as aguaymanto, cocona or traditional leaves such as the coca leaf in the Coca Sour. Another cocktail prepared with Peruvian Pisco is Chilcano (ginger ale, honey, lemon).

Similar cocktails to the Pisco Sour include the Chilean Piscola and the Peruvian Algarrobina Cocktail. Piscola is made by mixing Pisco with Coca-Cola.^[30] The Algarrobina Cocktail is made from Pisco, condensed milk, and sap from the Peruvian algarroba tree.^[31]

• 
  Aguaymanto Sour
• 
  Algarrobina Cocktail
• 
  Chilean Pisco Sour
• 
  Peruvian Pisco Sour
• Piscola
  Piscola
• 
  Tacna Sour

Nationality dispute

Chile disputes the national origin of Pisco Sour with Peru.^[32] The controversy stems from the work of Chilean historian Oreste Plath who, in his book Folklore lingüístico chileno, attributes the invention of the Pisco Sour to Elliot Stubb, an English steward from a sailing ship named "Sunshine". According to Plath, whom used as a source the Peruvian newspaper El Comercio de Iquique, Elliot Stubb obtained leave to disembark in the port of Iquique in 1872, with the aim of settling in the city and opening a bar. In his bar he supposedly invented the Pisco Sour while experimenting with drinks.^[33]

However, Peruvian researcher Guillermo Toro-Lira argues that Plath's story "has been recently refuted when it was found that the original historical source, the newspaper El Comercio de Iquique, was mentioning instead the alleged invention of the whiskey sour and not of the Pisco Sour."^[34] Additionally, renown Chilean historian Gonzalo Vial Correa also attributed the Pisco Sour's invention to Gringo Morris from the Peruvian Morris Bar, but with the minor difference of presenting his name as William Morris.^[35]

Despite the evidence, the disputes between Chile and Peru continue over the popular cocktail. In 2003, Peru created an official government holiday denominated as the "Día Nacional del Pisco Sour" (English: National Pisco Sour Day) for celebration on February 8.^[36] The Chilean Pisco industry retaliated by announcing its creation of the non-government sponsored "Día de la piscola" (English: Piscola Day), and also set it for celebration on February 8. Nonetheless, Chilean businessman Alberto Mois defended the unofficial holiday by claiming that "Piscola is by tradition the most common manner to drink Pisco in Chile. Nearly 90% of product consumption is done with Coca-Cola or white beverages."^[37][38] Peru responded by changing its Pisco Sour holiday to the first saturday of February.^[39]

Popularity

• The comedian Zane Lamprey, host of the show Three Sheets, filmed an episode in Chile which featured various beverages, including Pisco Sour which aired in 2009.^[40]
• American celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain drank, in an episode for the Travel Channel program Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations filmed in Chile, Pisco Sour at the Valparaiso restaurant "La Playa." He later expressed his disgust for the drink, to the point that at Puerto Varas he chose to drink white wine after being offered another Pisco Sour. Jorge López, the episode's Chilean producer and Bourdain's travel partner in Chile, explained that chef Bourdain found the Pisco Sour he drank in Valparaiso as "boring and worthless." Lopez added that chef Bourdain had just recently arrived from Peru, where he drank and enjoyed several Pisco Sours, which he thought were better tasting than the Chilean versions. A Chilean critic, Enrique Rivera, countered that chef Bourdain is a celebrity who generalizes the quality of a country's food by tasting only at a few places. A local newspaper in Chile further expressed that Bourdain's comment "constitutes a painful stab wound to the national pride."^[41]
• On November 17, 2009 Adal Ramones, a Mexican television show host and comedian, made a joke about Pisco Sours, in regard to the 2009 Chile-Peru espionage scandal: "What do the Chileans want to spy from Peru? How to make a good Pisco Sour?"^{[citation needed]}
• In late 2010 Mexican singer-songwriter Aleks Syntek created controversy via Twitter when he posted that the Pisco Sour is Chilean. After receiving a critical response from the Peruvian Twitter community, Syntek posted that he was only kidding.^{[citation needed]}
• In his series of novels beginning with the book Revelation Space, author Alastair Reynolds wrote several characters who prefer pisco sours, and trying to convince others to try the beverage.

See also

• List of cocktails with less common spirits
• Peruvian alcoholic drinks
• Pisco
• Sour (cocktail)

References

External links

• Go2Peru.com - Tourism site with information about Peruvian Pisco along with a recipe.
• Piscosour.com - The most complete website about Pisco Sour.