The Perfect Old Fashioned co*cktail (2024)

FAQs

How do you order the perfect Old Fashioned? ›

Order your Old Fashioned in 1 sentence so that you can tell your bartender what you want quickly. Begin by saying what brand and type of whiskey you want, and end with any adjustments you are making to the drink. For example, “I'll have a Maker's Mark Old Fashioned, extra bitter.”

An Old Fashioned is a very popular whiskey (usually bourbon) co*cktail. It is a co*cktail that could be made from a spicy rye whiskey as well, but today bourbon is preferred. Keep in mind that the bourbon that you choose can drastically change the flavor profile your Old Fashioned has.

Making the best Old Fashioned at home is really easy. Simplicity is the name of the game here. Bourbon whiskey, a little sugar, and a dash of bitters, stirred up with quality ice and garnished with an orange peel — that's all there is to it!

She says the tradition of adding soda and fruit to an Old Fashioned goes back to Prohibition. Since the only alcohol anyone could get at the time was homemade, much of it didn't taste great, so people began adding extra ingredients to drinks to mask the taste.

While these might not seem like drastically different liquors, they create two remarkably distinct versions of the co*cktail. As discussed in this intro to the Old-Fashioned article, bourbon tends to make a sweeter, rounder drink, while rye has a little more dryness, spice, and kick.

Angostura Aromatic Bitters

This reddish-brown bitters provides a fragrant bouquet of fruits and spices, and it's an essential ingredient for any classic Old Fashioned. Muddle these bitters with sugar or simple syrup to temper the sweetness, add your favorite bourbon, and you'll see why this brand is so popular.

Technique: The most balanced Old Fashioned is made by stirring the drink with ice for about 20 to 30 seconds and then straining that mix over fresh ice. Garnish: Orange twist, lemon twist, or both.

Bourbon or rye whiskey

Consequently, some traditionalists insist an Old-Fashioned should be made with rye, but bourbon is equally correct and the choice of whiskey should be entirely up to the personal taste of the drinker. Bourbon makes a mellow, slightly sweeter drink, while rye adds more spice and kick.

To summarize, Old-fashioned is the correct spelling. It refers to something outdated or a type of co*cktail. Old fashion is a misspelling of the adjective phrase old-fashioned.

Do you need sugar for Old Fashioned? ›

Deceptively simple, an Old Fashioned is made up of only whiskey, sugar and bitters – about as stripped down as a co*cktail can be.

1. Margarita. As the most ordered co*cktail in the world, the classic Margarita has been one of the most popular co*cktails in America for years and still remains on top. While there are many variations, the traditional recipe consists of tequila, Triple Sec and lime juice.

They are the Old Fashioned, Martini, Daiquiri, Sidecar, Whiskey Highball, and Flip. In each drink, every ingredient falls into at least one category.

Few co*cktails feature a history as varied and intriguing as the Sazerac, widely regarded as the world's oldest co*cktail. According to legend, the Sazerac was invented in 1838 by a Creole apothecary named Antoine Peychaud in his shop on Royal Street in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Do not mix an Old Fashioned with any whiskey you wouldn't enjoy on its own, whether neat or on the rocks. The best "mixing whiskey" is one you would also drink unmixed.

1. Sugar: The Old Fashioned is traditionally made with either granulated white sugar or a sugar cube. Superfine bar sugar is fast-dissolving and eliminates the potential for a crunchy co*cktail, as does simple syrup. ⇒ If you're avoiding white sugar, try another sweetener.

The fruit in an Old Fashioned is an integral part of the drink. If you're just dropping in a cherry and an orange and the end, may God have mercy on your soul. The fruit should be muddled along with the sugar and bitters.

The brandy old fashioned, bloody mary with a beer chaser, Tom & Jerrys — Wisconsin has laid claim to many co*cktails, or perhaps just made them better. In a state that continuously ranks in the top margins for alcohol consumption, Wisconsin's drinking traditions aren't just cherished, they've rarely changed.

Measured out in drops, using a precise, milliliter-dropper like the ones used to dispense medicine, a dash is about 10 single drops. Measured out in teaspoons, a dash would be 1/5 teaspoon, or as I discovered in my kitchen, between 1/8th teaspoon and 1/4 teaspoon.

The “official” recipe for an Old Fashioned is a sugar cube, bourbon or rye whiskey, water, Angostura bitters, and an orange peel.

What is a nice Old Fashioned? ›

In simple terms, an Old Fashioned is a co*cktail made of bourbon, sugar, bitters, orange, and a cherry. But depending on quality and quantity of ingredients, you can get a pretty wide spectrum of flavors.

Place the sugar cube in the bottom of an Old Fashioned glass and soak with 4-6 dashes (or drops) of Aromatic Bitters. Add a splash of water and muddle the sugar until it dissolves fully in the water and bitters. Only add enough water to dissolve the sugar.

An old fashioned is garnished with an orange peel, while a Manhattan is garnished with a brandied cherry. An old fashioned is served in a lowball glass, but a Manhattan is served in a stemmed martini glass.

Angostura makes perhaps the most ubiquitous bitters bottles out there, one that you'll see in nearly every bar - and one that you should have in your co*cktail arsenal at home. This reddish-brown bitters provides a fragrant bouquet of fruits and spices, and it's an essential ingredient for any classic Old Fashioned.

The Old Fashioned co*cktail, served on the rocks, is one of the traditional manly co*cktails we can't ignore. Poured over ice, this legendary combination of sugar, water, angostura bitters and either bourbon or rye whiskey will give you those ultimate man-points.

Technique: The most balanced Old Fashioned is made by stirring the drink with ice for about 20 to 30 seconds and then straining that mix over fresh ice. Garnish: Orange twist, lemon twist, or both.

DO NOT shake an Old Fashioned, always stir it. This has nothing to do with temperature but everything to do with texture. Shaking it will add air and water, diluting the co*cktail too quickly. Since the drink is primarily spirit, all you have to do is gently stir with ice, allowing for a smooth, velvety texture.

1. Sugar: The Old Fashioned is traditionally made with either granulated white sugar or a sugar cube. Superfine bar sugar is fast-dissolving and eliminates the potential for a crunchy co*cktail, as does simple syrup. ⇒ If you're avoiding white sugar, try another sweetener.

This restaurant's namesake co*cktail is finished with a flamed orange peel to enhance the smoky elements from the Bourbon and impart citrus aromas to the drink.

Use a good bourbon or rye whiskey based on your preference. Do not add seltzer or club soda, which many recipes call for. Some bartenders will muddle lots of fruit, such as maraschino cherries, in whiskey and call it an old-fashioned.

Should an Old Fashioned have a cherry? ›

Just so we're perfectly clear: There is no orange slice in an Old Fashioned. There is no cherry in an Old Fashioned. You do not mash up fruit of any kind in an Old Fashioned.

Most co*cktail recipes will call for “dashes” of bitters. A dash of bitters is typically 6-8 drops or 1/8th of a teaspoon.

Nelsen's Hall and Bitters Club on Washington Island, located on Wisconsin's side of Lake Michigan, has been pouring Angostura shots by the ounce since 1920. As with so many odd drinking traditions, the practice began as a means of circumventing Prohibition.