The Proper Old Fashioned
There are many variations to making an Old Fashioned. It’s a preference of building it in an old fashioned glass, or in a mixing glass. Some will use 1 sugar, others 2. Some will use syrups, and garnish it with a brandied cherry and an orange wedge. For others, a single orange peel twist is the perfect garnish. There are hundreds of combinations and the results range from perfection to an absolute abomination. The rest fall somewhere in the middle. Let’s get the blunders out of the way first so that we’ll never talk about it again.
Exhibit A: If I ever receive a drink that looks like the following when I ask for an Old Fashioned, it will be immediately sent back and I will likely not return to that establishment again.
WRONG!.. !
Reasons
Muddled orange pieces and cherries at the bottom of the glass. This is a Sangria with Whiskey, not an Old Fashioned.
This drink was not stirred. I can tell by the separation of color that ice was added to the glass after the fruit was muddled and then the whiskey was poured over top.
This drink was built in glass (which isn’t an issue), but the lack of condensation on the glass also tells me the drink wasn’t brought down to the correct temperature which is another dead giveaway that the drink was not stirred.
If I were to drink this, it would be semi cool whiskey now and a mouth full of sugar later. I would also get bits of fruit pieces and ice chips throughout the process. It would not be an enjoyable experience.
To make matters worse, apparently the muddled cherries wasn’t enough that a skewer with 4 more were supplied for our dining pleasure.
The non uniform ice pieces does not have visual appeal and will likely not make the viscosity of the drink appealing either. The drink will not be silky, but rather have sharp temperature differences at first.
Given the care put into this drink, if I had ordered a higher end whiskey, it would have been ruined.
Grey Season’s Old Fashioned
Now that we know what not to do, let me share with you a variation of the proper way to make an Old Fashioned. First, you’ll want to muddle oranges and cherries at the bottom of a glass. Just kidding! I was seeing if you were paying attention. Again, the perfect process could be argued and debated endlessly, but for me, this is the only way I’ll make an Old Fashioned. I hope you enjoy it.
Ingredients
1-2 Demerara sugar cubes
3 dashes of Angostura Orange bitters
splash of soda water
2 oz 100 proof bottled in bond bourbon or rye whiskey
orange peel for garnish
Luxardo brandied cherry
Technique
In an Old Fashioned glass add in 1-2 Demerara sugar cube depending sweet level. I typically use 1 with bourbon and 2 with a rye.
Add in 3 dashes of Angostura on top of the sugar cube
Add in a splash of soda water.
Using a muddler: crush, press, muddle and stir the sugar, bitters and water around to make a slurry.
You want to reduce the granularity of the sugar as much as possible
Add in 2oz of bourbon or whiskey
Gently lay 1 large clear ice cube down into the glass
With a mixing spoon’s back pressed against the inside of the glass, stir the ice until it reaches 35°F
Express the orange peel over the drink to release its oil.
Run the exterior side of the orange peel along the rim of the glass
Twist the orange peel and set it on top of the ice
Garnish with Luxardo brandied cherry. (Never use the neon red maraschino cherries. They are very unhealthy the way they’re processed, bleach and dyed.)