The Bar Manager’s Guide to House Syrups
Syrups are one of the easiest and cheapest ways to enhance flavor and add creativity behind the bar. But a good syrup program is more than just simple syrup. With the right ratios, methods, and tools, you can make syrups that are shelf-stable, cost-effective, and built for scale.
This guide covers the fundamentals: common ratios, prep methods, additives like gum arabic, shelf life, and tips for batching.
What Syrups Do in Cocktails
Syrups add more than sweetness. They affect mouthfeel, texture, and perceived balance. A thinner 1:1 syrup performs differently than a rich 2:1. Syrups also carry flavor: fruit, spice, nut, tea, and more.
If you want your specs to be consistent, your syrups need to be consistent too.
Weigh, Don’t Measure
Measuring by weight is the best way to ensure consistency in syrup prep. A cup of sugar from one vendor might weigh more or less than a cup from another due to granule size. That difference affects sweetness and solubility.
Infused syrups especially benefit from weight-based recipes. Fruit varies in size, water content, and density. Weighing ingredients ensures your ratios stay consistent, even when the fruit doesn’t. Avoid relying on volume or count-based instructions like “5 strawberries” or “1 cup chopped pineapple.”
Use grams. Record everything.
Syrup Ratios: 1:1, 1.5:1, and 2:1
1:1 Simple Syrup
Equal parts sugar and water by weight
Easy to make, but short shelf life
Thinner texture, good for shaken drinks
Almost all classic recipes are balanced with 1:1 in mind
1.5:1
Slightly richer; helps balance watery infusions like fruit or tea
Good balance of pourability and stability
Requires re-balancing some recipes
2:1 Rich Syrup
Twice as much sugar by weight as water
Long shelf life; the biggest risk being crystallization
Longer prep time often requiring heat
Adds weight to stirred drinks; used in many spirit-forward recipes
Slower and messier behind the bar
More sugar = more stability and body. But also higher perceived sweetness and slower pour speed. Choose based on how the syrup will be used.
Prep Methods: Pros, Cons, and Use Cases
| Method | Description | Pros | Cons | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cold Blend | Mixing ingredients together cold | Fast, no equipment | Doesn’t fully dissolve raw sugars | Quick prep, 1:1 simple syrup |
| Heated | In a saucepan on a stovetop | Fully dissolves, fast infusions | Can overcook delicate ingredients if not careful | 1.5:1, 2:1, infused syrups |
| Blender | Using a blender or immersion blender | Emulsifies, fast | Introduces air & can over-infuse bitter flavors of some ingredients | Orgeat, ginger, herb syrups |
| Sous Vide | Also called immersion circulators, these heat & circulate water around the sealed syrup | Gentle, precise, hands-off | Requires equipment (immersion circulator + vac-sealer) | Citrus zest, tea, delicate herbs, delicate fruits |
| Oleosaccharum | Using sugars to extract oils from ingredients, commonly citrus peels | Intense flavor from citrus oil | Slow, labor-intensive, and (relatively) expensive | Cordials, citrus syrups |
Additives That Improve Syrups
Citric and Malic Acid
Brighten flavor and extend shelf life. Especially useful in fruit syrups.
Salt
Enhances and rounds out sweetness. Start with 0.1% to 0.5% by weight.
Spirits
Add a small amount of neutral spirit or compatible base (e.g. mezcal in a smoked agave syrup) to extend shelf life and reinforce flavor.
Gum Arabic
Adds silkiness and viscosity. Used in old fashioned specs at bars like Death & Co. Great in spirit-forward drinks and mocktails. Hydrate it fully before adding sugar. Use at 0.5% to 1% by weight.
Methylcellulose
Used in low concentrations to create foaming syrups, especially for a shaken vegan drink option. Start with 0.2% to 0.5% by weight, depending on desired texture.
Tools That Help
Refractometer: Measures sugar concentration (Brix). Useful for consistency.
Fine mesh strainer / chinois: Removes pulp and solids.
Nut milk bag/super bag: Another filtration method that allows squeezing the liquid through the material.
Labeling system: Track date, ratio, and shelf life.
Immersion blender: Emulsifies nut or herb syrups.
Sous vide (immersion circulator): Great for batching with delicate ingredients.
Vacuum Sealer: Used with Sous vide
Digital scale: Essential for weighing sugar, fruit, water, and additives accurately.
Breville juicer (or equivalent): Speeds up prep for ginger, watermelon, and pulp-heavy syrups.
Build-Your-Own Syrups: A Framework for Creativity
Most syrups follow the same basic formula: sugar + water + optional additives. What sets great syrups apart is how you modify those building blocks. There are two main ways to create something unique:
1. Change the Ingredients
Sugar: white, raw, turbinado, demerara, honey, agave, maple, date syrup
Liquid: water, teas (black, green, herbal), fruit juices, vinegars, fresh pulp (like ginger)
Additives: salt, acid, alcohol, gum arabic, methylcellulose, and more
2. Transform the Ingredients
Toast or caramelize sugar before combining
Infuse sugar or water with herbs, spices, or zest
Use cooked vs. fresh fruit (roasted pineapple vs. raw)
Use smoked tea or charred citrus for added depth
Start simple. Swap one ingredient or apply one transformation. Record what works. Then refine.
Shelf Life and Labeling
| Syrup Type | Shelf Life (Fridge) |
|---|---|
| 1:1 Simple | 5–7 days |
| 2:1 Rich | 3–4 weeks |
| With Acid/Gum | Up to 6 weeks |
| Fruit-Based | 1–2 weeks |
| Orgeat | 1–2 weeks |
Scaling Your Syrup Program
Use Spec to cost and track syrup batches
Standardize ratios across drink families
Train staff on quality testing (tasting), storage, and labeling
Batch in volumes that match demand. Vac-seal and freeze excess stock.
Syrups are low-cost, high-impact ingredients. When you prep them right, they boost margins and open creative doors. Build your syrup library with intention—and make it easy to track, tweak, and scale with tools that work the way your bar does. Spec keeps your recipes consistent, your costs visible, and your team on the same page—whether you're batching 2 liters or twenty.
