Roses Simple Syrup

Roses Simple Syrup is a straightforward sweetener made for the bar: a liquid sugar that blends into cold drinks without the grit of granulated sugar. The product details give no ingredient list, ratio or flavoring, so treat it as a standard simple syrup, which usually means a neutral, clean sweetness with no strong aroma of its own. Syrups in this style are typically built on a sugar-to-water base, and that neutrality lets the spirit, citrus or bitters set the flavor of the drink. The main advantage over table sugar is that the syrup is already dissolved. Granulated sugar dissolves poorly in cold liquid and tends to settle at the bottom of the glass. Syrup disperses evenly the moment it hits the shaker or mixing glass, so the first sip and the last sip taste the same. It also lets you adjust sweetness a quarter ounce at a time. For most shaken sours, start at a half ounce of syrup for every ounce of citrus juice, then taste and correct. Stirred drinks need much less, often a bar spoon or about a quarter ounce. It suits classic sours: a Daiquiri (rum, lime, syrup), a Whiskey Sour (bourbon, lemon, syrup, and egg white if you like), a Tom Collins (gin, lemon, syrup, soda) and a Gimlet made from fresh lime. A small measure also works in an Old Fashioned in place of a sugar cube, and in a Mojito, where it saves muddling sugar into mint. Outside of alcohol, it can sweeten iced tea and cold coffee, both of which resist plain sugar, and it works in lemonade, limeade and homemade sodas. Expect it to be the quiet backbone of a drink, not a flavor in its own right. Keep the bottle at cool room temperature or in the refrigerator once opened, and shake or stir cold drinks with ice so the syrup chills and dilutes with the rest. Sours do well in a chilled coupe or a rocks glass over fresh ice. A Collins goes in a tall highball glass, and a Mojito in a sturdy Collins or highball. Use a jigger, not a free pour, because syrup is easy to overdo and the balance between sweet and sour decides whether a cocktail tastes bright or flat.