Stop Slow Sipping Your Egg White Cocktail. Here's Why

If you're looking for a cocktail to sip slowly while you wait for your friends to arrive at happy hour, a drink that has been made with egg whites may not necessarily be your best bet. Frothy cocktails made with egg whites are better off consumed at a fairly decent pace, as that pisco sour might start smelling funky if left on the bar table for too long. 

As satisfying as a perfectly shaken Ramos Gin Fizz might be, the silky texture that is built into the cocktail from the egg white will eventually emit a smell that is less than desirable. Yes, egg whites can build a creamy, smooth mouthfeel and can help soften the blow of other ingredients, but cocktails made with stronger, punchier alcohol can cook the eggy foam that the shaken egg whites leave behind. This will ultimately result in an "off" type of smell you may find difficult to put back. Should you find yourself with time to kill and are looking for a drink that you can savor without worrying about foul smells or possibly offending tastes, you may want to choose a beverage sans egg whites, instead.

Craving a drink with a silky mouthfeel without the egg whites? Many professional bartenders have turned to using aqua faba, the liquid from canned garbanzo beans, to create a similarly smooth texture. Additionally, mixologists have looked to shake up foamy beverages with ingredients such as coffee, citrus juices, foam products, gels, xanthan gum, and homemade syrups.

Can't turn away from your go-to order of a classic Whiskey Sour? The potential of a bad smell will largely depend on the freshness of the egg used and whether or not your bartender has taken steps to neutralize the odor, like using citrus in the recipe and serving the drink as cold as possible. Once your drink hits room temperature, the smell may become more noticeable, so both the temperature of the glass and the bar can impact how long you have before an eggy-smelling cocktail gives you pause.