Ingredients

simple syrup

Also known as “regular simple syrup”. Simple syrup is a high-concentration water and sugar solution, either prepared at home or available commercially. Simple syrup is the default sweetener in mixology. Simple syrup is half sugar, half water, by weight. To make simple syrup accurately and consistently, use a scale and weigh equal parts granulated sugar and water. When working with medium quantities, the most efficient process is to blend the mixture at low speed until the sugar is completely dissolved. For smaller quantities, you may simply shake the mixture a few times in a closed container or use some other agitation technique. You can also employ heat, but this may result in evaporation, throwing off the proportions slightly, and you wind up with a hot liquid you have to cool. Store refrigerated. Simple syrup has a brix of 50 (weight of sugar content) and a sweetness of 61.5% (weight in volume). Note: there’s a long history of people making sugar syrup with volume measurements rather than weight measurements. The problem is that granulated sugar is significantly packable, and when measuring by volume, your syrup proportion can vary by as much as 16%. Consequently, syrup made by volume measurement is generally less sweet than syrup made by weight, and less consistent.