If you were to poll bartenders and avid cocktail drinkers about the best cocktail of them all, a lot of people will respond with the old fashioned. The drink is a simple mix of whiskey, sugar, bitters, and water with some orange and cherry. That’s it. The drink was concocted to be straightforward and easy to make while adhering to the classic principles of old-school mixology without any flare or bullshit.
That said, this boozy whiskey-driven cocktail’s genesis is somewhat murky. What we do know is that a “cocktail” was first defined in print in 1806 as a mix of spirit, bitters, water, and sugar based on recipes that reached back deep into the 1700s. Throughout the 1800s, that simple recipe evolved to include a million different options, basically straying from the original “old fashioned” core cocktail recipe. By the 1850s, people were already asking for an “old fashioned” cocktail without all the jazzed-up extras. The Chicago Daily Tribune mentions the phenomenon in 1880 as a combination of “spirits, bitters, water, and sugar from seventy-six years ago” directly. (It’s also worth noting that back in those days, folks were asking for gin, brandy, and whiskey cocktails the “old fashioned” way — not just the whiskey ones.)
In 1881, Master Distiller James E. Pepper tasked a bartender at The Pendennis Club in Louisville, Kentucky, with making an “old-fashioned cocktail” with bourbon. He later supposedly brought the drink to the bar at New York’s famed Waldorf-Astoria, where it really gained popularity. Then as with all things, the old fashioned boomed and busted over and over again as the decades blazed past until you reach today where it is again the cornerstone of any whiskey bar menu. Yes friends, we’re deep in yet another old fashioned cocktail boom.
Our own Zach Johnston adheres to the classic version of the old fashioned, and that’s UPROXX Drink’s official recipe too. It follows:
Ingredients:
- 3 oz. bourbon or rye whiskey (plus a splash)
- 3 dashes of Angostura Bitters
- 1 barspoon raw sugar (or one cube)
- 1 barspoon mineral water
- 1 orange peel
- 1 cherry
- Ice + Large cube for service
Preparation:
- Prechill your glass in the freezer.
- Add the sugar, water, and bitters to the mixing jug and give it a pre-mix with the spoon until the sugar starts to dissolve. If you’re using a raw sugar cube, you’ll need a muddler to break the cube into the bitters and water.
- Add the bourbon or rye and give it a stir for ten or so seconds to dissolve the sugar (that water helps this as alcohol doesn’t dissolve solid sugar).
- Add a big handful of ice and stir for about 20-ish seconds until the mixing glass is ice-cold to touch.
- Fetch the glass from the freezer, add a large cube to the glass, and strain the cocktail into the glass.
- Express the oils from the orange peel over the cocktail and run the peel around the rim and body of the glass. Twist the peel and drop it onto the ice cube. Drop in a cherry and serve.
Johnston isn’t the only one who loves the classic whiskey-driven flavors of an old fashioned. Most bartenders do. After all, the entire point of an “old-fashioned cocktail” over the last 200-plus years is that there are no bullshit extras, and there’s a whole genre of bartenders who absolutely live for that sort of pedantry. But amidst all the dedication to tradition, we’ve also seen some unique (and fun!) riffs over the decades. Below you’ll find unique interpretations of the beloved cocktail from some of our favorite bartenders.
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Harris’ Legent-ary Old Fashioned
By Scott Taylor, Beverage Director at Harris’ Restaurant in San Francisco
The story goes that the Wisconsin-style old fashioned debuted at the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago using brandy with muddled orange and cherry in the sugar and bitters that’s topped with a splash of soda water. For our version, we use bourbon, which is also known as an Old Fashioned No. 2. The muddling of the fruit in the base makes for a well-balanced cocktail.
Ingredients:
- 2-3 oz. bourbon of choice (Harris’ uses Legent Bourbon)
- 1 orange slice
- 1 maraschino cherry
- 1 brown sugar cube
- 3 dashes Angostura Bitters
- Ice
- Splash of soda water
Preparation:
Muddle the ingredients (fruit, sugar, bitters) in the glass, and then add ice and your whiskey of choice. Stir to incorporate all the components, top with soda water, garnish with a citrus peel and serve.
Tom Cat 100 Old Fashioned
By Sam Nelis, Beverage Director at Barr Hill Distillery in Montpelier, Vermont
Barr Hill’s Tom Cat Gin is beloved by whiskey and gin drinkers alike. Our iteration with Tom Cat Gin brings a sweetness through the raw honey used in its distillation process that mingles beautifully with the Angostura Bitters and demerara syrup. The Tom Cat Old Fashioned is the perfect drink to end the night.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz. Tom Cat Gin
- 1/2 tsp. demerara sugar syrup
- 2-3 dashes of Angostura Bitters
- Ice
- Orange Twist
Preparation:
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass, add ice, stir, and then strain into an old-fashioned glass over fresh ice. Garnish by squeezing the citrus twists over the top of the cocktail. Serve.
Nocino Old Fashioned
By Alan Wither, Bar Manager at Principe in New York City
This old fashioned variation is our first ode to the autumn and winter seasons drawing closer every day. The essence of nuts and cocoa nibs really gives this cocktail a sweet and slightly bitter edge.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz. cocoa nib-infused bourbon
- .25 oz. Nocino walnut liqueur
- .25 oz. demerara sugar syrup
- 2 dash Orange Bitters
- 3 dash Angostura Bitters
- Ice
Preparation:
Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass. Fill with ice and stir for 30 seconds. Strain into a double rocks glass with a large ice cube and garnish with an orange wheel.
Cocoa nib-infused bourbon:
- 100 g cocoa nib
- 1-liter bourbon
Preparation:
Toast cocoa nibs in preheated oven at 350f for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and combine with bourbon in an airtight sterile container overnight. Strain into a fresh bottle.
Wagyu Pastrami Old Fashioned
By Ryan Yoder, bartender at Papi Steak in Miami
The Wagyu Pastrami Old Fashioned was brought to life by combining two things that Papi Steak does best — Wagyu Pastrami and a lavishly over-the-top experience. We took one of the most recognizable classic American cocktails and flipped it on its head by elevating it with an aged Japanese whisky and garnishing it with wagyu pastrami. We delicately build the cocktail, place it through a glass smoker, and present it tableside with white glove service. It doesn’t get much more Miami than this.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz. Suntory Toki Whisky
- 1 oz. pastrami spice
- 1 oz. apple syrup (DaVinci Gourmet Classic Apple Syrup)
- Ice
Preparation:
Combine ingredients into a cocktail mixer. Stir 20-30 times. Strain into a rocks glass over a large ice cube. Garnish with a dehydrated apple slice and a slice of Papi Steak’s signature Wagyu Pastrami [or regular ‘ol pastrami -ed]. Lastly, place the cocktail inside a glass cocktail smoker using applewood chips. Once the vessel has filled with smoke, remove the glass topper in a circular motion allowing the smoke to dissipate and serve.
Bidi Bid Bom Fashioned
By Cristhian Rodriguez, Bar Director at elNico in Brooklyn, New York
The Bidi Bidi Bon Fashioned was Inspired by the exotic flavors of a chocolate bonbon by SoHo chocolatier “Stick With Me Sweets“.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz. coconut-infused Michter’s Bourbon
- 0.5 oz. black sesame-infused Michter’s Rye Whiskey
- 0.4 oz. demerara syrup
- 0.4 oz. Harmless Harvest coconut water
- 1 tsp. Szechuan oil
- 1 pinch of Maldon sea salt
- Ice
Preparation:
Mix all ingredients in a mixing glass except the coconut water and place the whole glass in the freezer. Once a thin layer of oil has frozen on top, remove it from the freezer, spoon off the oil, and strain the cocktail through a fine filter paper (a drip coffee filter will work). Strain the cocktail into a waiting glass with fresh ice, add coconut water, and finish with a pinch of Maldon sea salt.
Apéritif’s Old Fashioned
By Panji Wisrawan, mixologist at Aperitif Bar at Viceroy Bali in Bali
For me, the old fashioned is the very definition of a cocktail. And you really don’t need to mess with that. But of course, we do like to put our identity in our Signature Old Fashioned at Aperitif Bar. Using some kitchen techniques, we infuse the bourbon with beeswax for a smooth and rich mouthfeel using the sous vide. After the infusion, we coat the bottle with cheddar cheese for an extra nutty kick in the slightly natural honey flavor from the beeswax. To sweeten, we are using our homemade Mesoyi syrup (and Indonesian spice bark similar to cinnamon). A generous dash of Peychaud’s and Angostura Aromatic Bitters rounds up the flavor and leaves a robust taste that enhances the overall experience of our Signature Old Fashioned.
Ingredients:
- 1.5 oz. cheddar cheese and beeswax-infused bourbon
- 0.25 oz. Mesoyi syrup
- 3 dashes of Peychaud’s Bitters
- 1 dash Angostura Bitters
- Ice
Preparation:
Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass and begin to stir. Once chilled and diluted, pour into an ice-filled old-fashioned glass. Garnish it with a flamed orange peel.
Cheese Wax Bourbon:
Put 50 grams of beeswax and 1 bottle of bourbon (preferably Maker’s Mark) into a vacuum bag and then sous vide at 140F for two hours. After that, let the liquid completely cool and then strain using a fine strainer. Don’t throw away the beeswax yet. Pour the beeswax-infused bourbon into a large bowl and use the bain-marie method to incorporate 1.5 oz. of grated cheddar cheese and the beeswax from the sous vide bag into the bourbon. Slowly pour the bourbon into a fresh whiskey bottle and seal it. Slowly roll the whiskey around the bottles until the inside is completely coated with the solidifying cheese. Place the bottle in the refrigerator to chill completely.
Mesoyi Syrup:
Combine 10 oz. raw forest honey, 10 oz. brown sugar, 6.5 oz. water, and 0.35 oz of Mesoyi bark (you can use good cinnamon bark too) in a pan. Simmer till all sugar is dissolved and the aroma of Mesoyi has started to bloom. Let rest for one hour before straining and bottling.
Smoking Mirrors
By Rachel Sergi, Bar Manager at Off The Record in Washington, DC
This drink conjures up a fantasy of camping with a proper cocktail. The smoke provides mystery and a ‘campfire’ while the rye acts like your favorite wool blanket to keep you warm, and the syrup and bitters remind you of nature. The bacon? Well, everything’s better with bacon.
Ingredients:
- 2 oz. WhistlePig 10-Year Rye
- .5 oz. maple syrup
- 2 dashes of Black Walnut Bitters
- 1 piece crispy bacon (skewered)
- Ice (for chilling and a large cube for serving)
Preparation:
Place all of the ingredients (except bacon) in a stirring vessel with ice. Stir to incorporate, dilute, and chill. Place a large cube of ice into a rocks glass and pour the chilled mixture over. Use a smoking gun to fill your glass with applewood smoke. Cover the glass to keep the smoke inside. To serve, remove the cover and garnish the drink with skewered bacon.
