The Super Way Bartenders Bulk Up Citrus Juice

Most bartenders will keep lemon juice and lime juice behind the bar, unless they're just slinging beer bottles, because citrus is a must-have if you're making margaritas, martinis, or lemon drop cocktails (which are not martinis). More and more though, you might be getting a drink made not with normal lemon juice, but with something called super juice.

Hearing the name "super juice" may bring to mind the many wellness drinks out there on supermarket shelves. Super juice is, essentially, a method for extracting juice from citrus fruit which can get you eight times as much juice from a single fruit. What makes it super is less about being healthy (not that citrus is bad for you, because it's not), and more about the fact that it's a great way for bartenders to reduce food waste. The usual process involves peeling the fruit, and then blending zest from the peels with the fruit's insides and other extras.

For more inside information, we spoke to Tiffanie Barriere, an educator, bartender, and mixologist who's known as The Drinking Coach. Barriere suggests nothing more than "citrus juice, zest, malic acid, citric acid, MSG, and water. That's it." Malic acid and citric acid are both commonly sold in powder form and add extra citrus flavor to the super juice.

If you make your super juice right, it might taste slightly different than normal juice when drinking it straight, but it's impossible to tell the difference once it's mixed into cocktails. It takes some extra effort, compared to just squeezing a lemon, but Tiffanie Barriere says the strategy is simple: "Microplane the peels, infuse [them] in the juice, and let it sit so the oils bond, in a blender. Then strain. And for max juice? Roll it warm or room temp and press that fruit like you mean it." Plus, on top of getting you way more juice than squeezing citrus the standard way, the super juice mixture will stay so well preserved, it can last for a couple of weeks in the fridge. 

Super juice can be traced back to a bartender named Nickle Morris in Louisville, Kentucky in 2020, and it sometimes goes by the slightly more scientific name of "oleo citrate." When we asked whether bartenders still use super juice, Barriere offered an enthusiastic "Yes!" and added, "Super juice is that smart, sustainable flex. You blend zest oils into the juice, so you're getting aromatics, brightness, and longer shelf life. It makes the citrus hit harder and hold up better in cocktails." It's a great tool to use when you're at home and trying to mix up some easy, fancy cocktails to clean out your fridge.