Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

The Pink Lady is what people drank in the 1920s when they wanted to look sophisticated while quietly demolishing four cocktails before dinner. It is gin, applejack, grenadine, lemon, and an egg white shaken until it foams like a pink cappuccino.

It looks delicate and arrives in a coupe glass with a maraschino cherry. Then you sip it and discover it is essentially two shots of liquor wearing a ballgown. The egg white softens the punch into something that feels like a dessert. The grenadine makes it pink. The applejack gives it a warm, slightly orchard-y depth that gin alone cannot manage.

It fell out of fashion for about forty years because the world decided pink drinks were unserious. The cocktail bars that brought it back understood the assignment: anything you can shake until it foams is automatically a flex.

The trick to a great Pink Lady is the dry shake. You shake everything without ice first, just to whip the egg white into foam. Then you add ice and shake again to chill it. Skip the dry shake and the foam never forms properly. Do both shakes and you get that perfect cappuccino-like cap on top.

cocktail in golden hour outdoor setting
Scotty Boxa

Pink Lady Cocktail

No ratings yet
A Prohibition-era classic. Gin, applejack, grenadine, lemon, and egg white shaken into a foamy pink cocktail that drinks like a posh dessert.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Total Time 5 minutes
Ingredients Method Nutrition Notes

Ingredients
 

  • 1.5 oz Gin
  • 1/2 oz Applejack (or apple brandy)
  • 1/2 oz Fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 oz Grenadine
  • 1 Egg white large egg
  • 1 Maraschino cherry to garnish

Instructions
 

Dry shake to emulsify:
  1. Add gin, applejack, lemon juice, grenadine, and the egg white to a cocktail shaker (no ice). Shake hard for 15 seconds. This is the dry shake — it whips air into the egg white and makes the foam.
Wet shake to chill:
  1. Open the shaker, fill it with ice, close it back up, and shake again for 15 to 20 seconds until the outside of the shaker is properly cold.
Strain and garnish:
  1. Double-strain into a chilled coupe glass. The foam should sit on top in a clean white layer.
  2. Drop a maraschino cherry on top. Drink slowly because the foam is the entire point.

Nutrition

Calories: 180kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 3gSodium: 0.05mgSugar: 8g

Notes

If raw egg makes you nervous, use about 3/4 oz of aquafaba (the liquid from a can of chickpeas). It foams identically and is vegan and pasteurised by default.
Original 1911-ish versions sometimes called for cream instead of egg white. That is also delicious but is a different drink, closer to a flip than a Pink Lady.
Servings: 1 cocktail
Calories: 180

Loved This Recipe?

You'll love my Recipe Books!

Tips That Actually Matter

  • Use real grenadine. The neon red bottle from the supermarket is corn syrup with food colouring. Pomegranate-based grenadine (or homemade) makes the drink taste like a real cocktail instead of a cordial.
  • Coupe over martini glass. The wider rim shows off the foam. A martini glass works but the photo is less impressive.
  • Freeze your coupe. Five minutes in the freezer before serving keeps the foam holding shape for longer.

More Bad Decisions From Behind the Bar

I’m Scotty Boxa. Australian author, professional bad decision maker, and the bloke responsible for the rest of this website.

If this recipe made you laugh, you’ll like the rest of what I do. I write books that are mostly true stories about cocktails, travel, and the disasters that come with both. If you want a starter pack, grab the free PDF below. No email required, just take it.