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Old Fashioned Cocktail Recipe
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Old Fashioned Cocktail
An Old Fashioned is a classic, booze-forward cocktail. This recipe makes an Old Fashioned that Don Draper would be proud of.
Servings: 1 cocktail
Calories: 120kcal
Cost: 2
Ingredients
- 1.5 oz Bourbon We prefer Maker's Mark
- 4 dashes Angostura Bitters
- 1.5 tsp Simple Syrup ( or .25 oz)
- 1 Orange Peel for garnish
Instructions
- Fill mixing jar (or pint glass) with ice
- Add bourbon, bitters, and simple syrup
- Stir for about 15 second, cooling the mixture
- Strain over a single large ice cube
- Squeeze orange peel (skin facing towards drink), allowing the oils to land in your cocktail. Garnish with orange peel.
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Tools Needed
You’ll need just a few simple tools for this recipe. You probably already have most of them in your kitchen:
- Mixing Jar ( or pint glass)
- Mixing Spoon ( or a long spoon)
- Cocktail Strainer
What is an Old Fashioned?
An Old Fashioned is a classic, alcohol-forward cocktail made from whiskey, bitters, and sugar. There are regional variations on the drink, such as using brandy instead of whiskey, or adding soda.
This Old Fashioned Recipe makes a refined version of the drink that cocktail purists love. If you’re not familiar with this cocktail, it is noting that they tend to be very strong. These are sippers. However, if they’re made correctly, they should still be well balanced.
How to Make this Cocktail
Every bartender has their own way of making a drink and we’re not different. Many Old Fashioned recipes use rye or other types of whiskey, but we prefer bourbon. Bourbon balances the drink well but still gives the boozy kick that we love. You can experiment with different base alcohols, but our favorite is Maker’s Mark.
We’ve found that using simple syrup to add sweetness works better than muddling fruit and sugar in the glass. The end result is a cleaner looking cocktail that doesn’t have gritty pieces of undissolved sugar left over.
Every bartender has their own way of making a drink and we’re not different. Many Old Fashioned recipes use rye or other types of whiskey, but we prefer bourbon. Bourbon balances the drink well but still gives the boozy kick that we love. You can experiment with different base alcohols, but our favorite is Maker’s Mark.
We’ve found that using simple syrup to add sweetness works better than muddling fruit and sugar in the glass. The end result is a cleaner looking cocktail that doesn’t have gritty pieces of undissolved sugar left over.
The last important point is how our recipe uses ice. If you just mix the drink in the glass and then add ice, then you have a warm cocktail that melts the ice and quickly dilutes it. Instead, we prefer to mix the cocktail in a mixing jar with ice right away. This gets the cocktail diluted to a certain point. Then we strain it over a single large ice cube. Since you’re pouring a cold cocktail over a large mass of ice, you single big cube won’t melt quickly and further dilute the drink.
If you don’t have a way of making big ice cubes, we suggest getting one of these silicone ice cube molds.
What variations are there?
When creating an Old Fashioned recipe, there’s a simple formula you need to follow. Liquor + bitters + sugar = old fashioned. That means that you can experiment with different liquors, bitters, or sources of sweetness. The possibilities are really endless. Many bars and restaurants are starting to impart a smokey flavor on the drink by smoking the glass on an aromatic wood board.
If you made this cocktail or experimented with some variation of it, let us know down in the comments!