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September 13, 2022 2 min read

If you have a taste for a classic cocktail, mixing traditional attitude with a refined new spirit (along with water, sugar, and bitters), then an Old Fashioned is the perfect drink. It’s been around for hundreds of years, yet a goodOld Fashionednever goes out offashion. From Sinatra to Don Draper, this libation has been enjoyed by writers, actors, and those who want a simple taste of the good life.

 

How Old Fashioned Got Its Name

So why is it called an Old Fashioned? Well, there are a few notable reasons. For instance, the name literally started out as 'the cocktail'. Yep, the Old Fashioned was the first original cocktail! In fact, the word ‘cocktail’ was first documented in 1806 in New York’s The Balance and Columbian Repository newspaper. They called it a “concoction of spirits, bitters, water, and sugar”. In essence, it was the making of what we now know as a good Old Fashioned.

 

In the 1860’s, people who didn't necessarily like the new cocktails of the time would ask for their drinks to be made the ‘old fashioned’ way. With those two words...the Old Fashioned was born.

 

What’s In a Traditional Old Fashioned?

An Old Fashioned is a delightfully simple cocktail. It’s really just whiskey seasoned with bitters. A traditional Old Fashioned is created by muddling sugar with bitters, along with a little bit of water and whiskey.

Here are the ingredients you’ll need:

  • Bourbon or rye whiskey
  • Sugar cube
  • Water
  • Angostura bitters
  • Orange peel 

 

How To Make A Classic Old Fashioned

Now that we know what’s in an Old Fashioned, let’s talk about how to make this classy cocktail.

  1. Take out your favorite Rocks Glass
  2. Soak sugar cube with bitters – For an Old Fashioned, angostura bitters are the standard. They help to bind ingredients, enhance flavors, and round out the cocktail. Purists use sugar cubes, but many people like to use simple syrup. It’s really up to you. Though syrup dissolves better, the balanced sweetness of the sugar cube really lets the whiskey shine.
  3. Muddle with 1⁄2 teaspoon water – Crush down the bitter-soaked sugar cube, add the water, and swirl it with a wooden muddler until the sugar is mostly dissolved.
  4. Add 2 ounces whiskey - Again, choice of whiskey is up to you. Bourbon is sweet with hints of vanilla and oak while rye whiskey has more of a spicier finish. Either one works beautifully.
  5. Add ice, stir, garnish with an orange peel - Add a large ice cube (clear artisan style) made with a craft cocktail ice cube tray. Stir with a bar spoon for 10-20 seconds. Now add your orange peel. Squeeze it over the drink first to release the oils and give it a strong orange bouquet. For an even sweeter sip, run the orange peel around the rim of the glass.
  6. Enjoy

 

And that’s how you make the perfect Old Fashioned. Simple, right? So whether you’re enjoying alone or hosting a dinner party, fixing an Old Fashioned will bring a sense of class, nostalgia, and ‘Rat Pack’ cool to any occasion.