Egg
The whole egg, both halves working: white for foam, yolk for richness. It is the older bar ingredient of the two, since the flip predates the sour, and the Tom and Jerry still uses everything in the shell.
Quick Facts
Flavour Profile
Primary Flavours
Tasting Notes
Nearly flavourless, entirely textural: the white builds foam, the yolk brings custard weight, and together they turn a drink into a flip.
Storage & Handling
Refrigerated in the box, pointed end down: take out only what the drink needs.
Shelf Life
Use by the date on the box: the fresher, the better the foam
Usage
Shaken whole into a flip for body and silk, or separated, beaten and folded back together for a Tom and Jerry batter. The white alone makes a sour foam and the yolk alone enriches, which are different drinks.
Older Than the Sour
The egg has been in drinks for centuries. The flip began in English taverns, and by the golden age of American bartending the whole egg, the white and the yolk each had their own line of drinks. The white survived in the sour family, but the whole egg is the original tool.
That order matters when reading old books. A recipe calling simply for an egg means the whole one, and interpreting it as a modern sour’s egg white gives a thinner drink than the writer intended.
Each Half Has a Job
The white is protein and water, whipping into the foam that gives a drink its crown. The yolk is fat and lecithin, which is the difference between a sour and a custard.
Shaken together in a flip they read as silk. Separated, beaten apart and folded back together, as in the Tom and Jerry, they become structure instead: a batter stiff enough to carry hot liquid without collapsing, which neither half manages alone.
Safety, Managed Rather Than Feared
In Britain, eggs bearing the Lion mark come from vaccinated flocks and are considered safe raw or lightly cooked under Food Standards Agency guidance. Buy fresh, keep them cold, and the risk stays small and managed.
The usual exceptions apply regardless of the mark: raw egg is not for the very young, the very old, anyone pregnant or anyone immunocompromised. Offering an egg-free alternative costs nothing and is the right default when serving people you do not know.
Handling
Fresh and cold separates best, because the yolk holds together and the white keeps its structure. A warm egg spreads and the yolk breaks into the white, which ruins both halves for a drink that needed them apart.
Crack each egg into its own bowl before it goes near the tin. One bad egg then ruins nothing but itself, where cracking straight into a shaker holding three good ones costs the lot.
Store them refrigerated in the box and pointed end down, which keeps the yolk centred and away from the air pocket at the blunt end. Take out only what the drink needs, since an egg left on the side warms faster than it looks like it should.
Top Tips
- Fresh and cold separates best: the yolk holds together and the white keeps its structure.
- Crack each egg into a separate bowl first: one bad egg then ruins nothing but itself.
- In Britain, look for the Lion mark: eggs carrying it are considered safe served raw or lightly cooked under Food Standards Agency guidance.
Possible Substitutions
- Egg white alone: foam without richness
- Aquafaba: the plant-based stand-in for the white
- Pasteurised whole egg: the cautious route, with slightly less foam
Common Questions
Is it safe to use raw egg in cocktails?
A measured risk, sensibly managed: in Britain, eggs bearing the Lion mark are considered safe served raw or lightly cooked under Food Standards Agency guidance. Use fresh, refrigerated eggs, crack them cleanly, and offer an egg-free alternative to anyone who prefers one.
What is the difference between a flip and a sour with egg white?
How much of the egg goes in. A sour borrows the white for foam, while a flip takes the whole egg, yolk included, for body and custard richness. The flip is the older and considerably heavier drink of the two.
Why does the Tom and Jerry separate the egg?
For structure. The white beats to a foam and the yolk beats to a cream, and folding them back together builds a batter stiff enough to hold hot milk or water without collapsing, which neither half manages on its own.
Why crack eggs into a separate bowl?
So one bad egg ruins nothing but itself. Cracking straight into a tin already holding three good ones costs all four, and a stale egg is not always obvious until it is out of the shell and next to something.
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Guide by Jerry Can Spirits