Nov-Dec-2015_Pg 11_no bleed

the Holiday Entertaining issue

Old Fashioned The recipe for an Old Fashioned cocktail is pretty straightforward. WHAT YOU WILL NEED 2 ounces of spirit 1 sugar cube Water (ice) Bitters Lemon peel HOW TO PREP In an Old Fashioned glass, add 3-4 dashes of bitters to the sugar cube, along with a teaspoon of filtered water. You want just enough to soak the sugar cube. Muddle the sugar until it is dissolved.  Add your spirit and ice.  Stir for about 10 seconds.  Add a twist of lemon and serve. Old Fashioned Cherries WHAT YOU WILL NEED 12 ounce Mason jar ¾ cup dried cherries, pitted 1 cup Buffalo Trace Bourbon 2 tablespoons sugar 1 teaspoon grated orange peel HOW TO PREP Rinse cherries and place in a 12-ounce jar. In a small saucepan, bring bourbon and sugar to a gentle simmer over very low heat. Add orange peel and simmer, stirring, until sugar has completely dissolved. Pour bourbon syrup over cherries. Cover and let stand at least 24 hours to macerate.

Call Me Old Fashioned by Bobby Childs

T he Old Fashioned — a grandpa cocktail if ever there was one — is back in fashion. Chances are when you order an Old Fashioned at a bar or restaurant, the bartender mixes some bourbon, sugar and bitters with a muddled orange, stirs in some ice, and garnishes with a maraschino cherry. They may sub the bourbon for rye whiskey, and the muddled fruit for an orange twist.  Bourbon or rye, muddled fruit or twist, these completely different recipes are both called an Old Fashioned. That’s because an Old Fashioned refers more to a style of cocktail than a specific drink. Let me explain.  The first definition of the word cocktail — spirit, water, sugar and bitters — appeared in 1806. This basic recipe was known as a simple cocktail. Notice that the recipe calls for a “spirit” instead of bourbon or rye whiskey. People used all sorts of spirits, including the aforementioned whiskies, brandy, fortified wines and gin. 

An Old Fashioned made with gin? Nonsense, you say! Actually, it was pretty popular.  The simple cocktail became a fancy cocktail with the addition of a lemon twist. This fancy cocktail was later referred to as an Old Fashioned cocktail. In the early 1900s, bartenders began using muddled orange and cherries topped with a spray of seltzer. The addition of muddled fruit was different than the simple twist of a fancy cocktail, but for some reason, it was still considered an Old Fashioned. (Personally, I’m usually not a fan of what I call the “fruit salad” version of an Old Fashioned. A simple citrus twist will do. To each their own.) Further experiments led to new famous cocktails, like the Manhattan (whiskey, sweet vermouth, bitters, orange peel and cherry) and the Sazerac (rye whiskey, Peychaud’s bitters and an absinthe rinse).  Then, as things do, tastes came full circle. Folks became tired of the cocktail-of-the- moment, and sought a return to something simple. They’d walk up to the bar and ask for a cocktail, “the old fashioned way.”

Bobby Childs — photo by Romney Caruso

52

MY ROUSES EVERYDAY NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2015