Photo by Tracie Davis
If you ask 10 people how to make homemade lemonade, expect approximately 11 answers. Although the drink has just three ingredients—water, lemon and sugar—lemonade is a canvas for diverse preferences and creative expressions.
Chief among these is the sweet-sour balance. Some like lemonade with ample sugar or simple syrup, while others favor lots of lemon juice for a sharper tang.
“On its face it looks easy, but it’s a tricky balance,” says Chris Marshall, founder of Sans Bar in Austin, Texas.
The self-proclaimed “first sober bar in Texas,” Sans has had an array of lemonades that included versions infused with herbs and lavender. “Lemonade is a great place to experiment,” says Marshall. “There are so many fun things you can do.”
Origin stories for lemonade abound. Some historians point to an 11th-century Egyptian beverage, qatarmizat, made with sugar and lemon juice.
