Old Fashioned
Old-fashioned Whiskey Cocktail.
A Cocktail in the Old Style (Fashion) consisting of Whiskey, Bitters, Ice, and Sugar.
Contents |
Pre-cursor to the Old Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail
Jerry Thomas (1862)
Whiskey Cocktail
- (Use small bar-glass.)
- Take 3 or 4 dashes of gum syrup.
- 2 dashes of bitters (Boker's).
- 1 wine-glass of whiskey.
Fill one-third full of fine ice ; shake and strain in a fancy red wine-glass. Put in a piece of twisted lemon peel in the glass and serve.
The Old-Fashioned Myth
“Old Waldorf Bar Days” by Albert Stevens Crockett (1931)
This was brought to the old Waldorf in the days of its “sit-down” Bar, and introduced by, or in honor of, Col. James E. Pepper, of Kentucky, proprietor of a celebrated whiskey of the period. The Old-fashioned Whiskey cocktail was said to have been the invention of a bartender at the famous Pendennis Club in Louisville, of which Col. Pepper was a member.
David Wondrich says "Busted"
"Since the Chicago Daily Tribune was already discussing "old fashioned cocktails" in February of 1880 and the Pendennis Club wasn't founded until 1881, I think it's safe to pronounce this myth busted."
Earliest Recipe
- “Modern American Drinks” By George J. Kappeler (1895)
The Old-Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail:
"Dissolve a small lump of sugar with a little water in a whiskey-glass; add two dashes Angostura bitters, a small piece ice, a piece lemon-peel, one jigger whiskey. Mix with small bar-spoon and serve, leaving spoon in glass."
First occurence of Muddling Fruit in an Old-Fashioned Cocktail
“Burke’s Complete Cocktail and Tastybite Recipes”, by Harman Burney Burke (1936)
Old Fashioned Cocktail
- Whiskey, 1 Glass
- Sugar, 1 Lump
- Angostura Bitters, 2 Dashes
- Curacao or Absinthe, 2 Dashes
Add one Slice of Orange, one Slice of Lemon Peel, mull with the Bitters and Sugar, then add the Whiskey and serve in the same glass.
Common Recipes
Dick Bradsell's Recipe.
Note: This is the Recipe/ Method that most bartenders in London, England use. It is a variation on the "Old Fashioned De-Luxe" by David Embury (see below).
- Ingredients:
- 50ml Bourbon
- 10ml sugar syrup
- 2 dash angostura bitters
Glass: Rocks
Method:
- In a glass put sugar