As a leader in the mindful mixology movement, bartender-author Derek Brown of Washington D.C.’s Columbia Room crafts nonalcoholic cocktails that are every bit as complex and nuanced as their boozy counterparts. In this zesty lemon sour, Brown combines a ginger syrup with lemon, apple cider vinegar, and salt tincture. The addition of aquafaba, the viscous liquid in canned chickpeas, offers body and a touch of earthiness as a vegan alternative to an egg white.
*To streamline your prep, you can use store-bought ginger syrup in this recipe—we like the version made by the Ginger People—but with a little advance planning, it’s easy to make your own. Check out our recipe here.