South Side Cocktail Recipe

The South Side, a combination of gin, lemon juice, mint, and simple syrup, has a muddled and cloudy history. Ask five bartenders where this fresh and bright cocktail originated, and you’re likely to get five different answers.

The most commonly repeated origin story is that the South Side was the go-to drink for speakeasies during Prohibition, with rumors that famous Chicagoland gangster Al Capone was in some way involved with the cocktail’s origin. Others tie the South Side to the 21 Club in New York City, where the South Side was the former speakeasy’s house drink. Neither of these origin stories are correct, though.

According to Eric Felten in The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails, the South Side’s history can be traced to the Southside Sportsman’s Club in Long Island, New York, where it began as the bar’s Mint Julep. From there, the club’s wealthy clientele spread its popularity by asking for the drink at other bars. The drink made its first appearance in print in Hugo Ensslin’s 1917 cocktail book Recipes for Mixed Drinks, meaning the South Side was around well before Prohibition and Capone’s arrival in Chicago. In the years that followed, the South Side gained a reputation as a drink for wealthy country club members and sporting types.

Why the South Side works

The South Side is similar in build to many classic cocktails. Its combination of spirit, citrus juice, and sugar places it in the realm of one of the most versatile and timeless cocktail categories, the sour. This blueprint is put to use in many timeless classics like the Daiquiri, Tommy’s Margarita, and the Gin Sour.

This template works because the ingredients work together to create a balanced cocktail. The alcoholic bite of the gin is tempered by the addition of simple syrup. The lemon juice’s acidity provides a counterbalance to the sweetness of the simple syrup. The mint adds a herbal element that pairs well with the botanical notes of the gin and gives the South Side a pop of freshness. The result is a bright, minty, and refreshing cocktail that’s perfect for an afternoon at the country club.