It had become a pantomime of itself.MAKING OF A CLASSIC When you think of bourbon cocktails, it's likely that the first place your mind goes is to the old fashioned, and with good reason. The Whiskey Cocktail had to be drunk the old way, not because of virility or patriotic love, but for the simple fact that the Whiskey Cocktail had become so sweet that people didn’t drink it anymore. They almost made it a question of national health. However, the drift of the variants led to a degeneration of the cocktail, and some purists rebelled. In an article in the Memphis Daily Appeal of 1859, the Whiskey Cocktail was defined as a “fashionable cocktail,” a companion to gentleman’s evenings, the cocktail for important occasions. The Old Fashioned becomes the official cocktail of the United States ![]() At one point, it was so “famous” that it was recommended as a morning drink, a medicinal tonic to fix the stomach, the same function also recognized to Mint Julep, a very close relative. The whiskey cocktail was (and still is!) a lubricant of social relationships, an excuse to relax and enjoy time with your friends after work. ![]() If we want to talk about the first real Old Fashioned, we have to wait for the publication of the bible by Jerry Thomas, the legendary How to Mix Drinks, or The Bon-Vivant’s Companion manual.Įven though its first incarnation was known as the Whiskey Cocktail and made with two drops of Boker’s bitters, a bit of gum arabic syrup, and a glass of whiskey.įrom that moment, it was a flourishing of variations: gin, cognac, sherry, garnish, and fruit began to invade the glass. As evidence of this, the first written definition of cocktail found in the United States is reported by the newspaper Balance and Columbian Repository of 1806: “A stimulating drink, made from any distillate, sugar, water and bitter.” And coincidentally, the identikit corresponds to Old Fashioned and Sazerac. The cocktail is born with whiskey and is closely linked to the life and eating habits of the United States: the step from whiskey on the rocks to a whiskey cocktail flavored with two drops of aromatic bitters and sugar is short. We are talking about a pillar of the history of the mixology, one of the oldest cocktails, born at the end of the 1800s, together with Sazerac, different in ingredients but with which it shares the same preparation, or it would be better to say the same ritual. History: when was it born, and who invented it? Stir gently and garnish with a slice of orange or lemon peel or a maraschino cherry. Unless you want to customize your syrup with some particular ingredients to infuse infinite shades into your cocktails, but that’s another story.įill with ice and pour your favorite whiskey: Bourbon or Rye. When I order an Old Fashioned, I want to watch the bartender working: it’s a part of the pleasure. But this is a ritual and a legend, not only liquid satisfaction. Sure, to make an optimal cocktail, it is clear that sugar syrup is the best ingredient: it is more easily soluble and speeds up the work. You should never use syrup sugar: only simple sugar. We are talking about a pillar of the history of mixed drinks, one of the oldest cocktails, born towards 1800, along with the Sazerac, different in the ingredients but with which it shares the same preparation, or should I say the same ritual. It’s no coincidence that during Prohibition, the bartenders used to pound a lemon peel with sugar to disguise the flaws of the moonshine. ![]() There aren’t any fruit juices, syrups, or liqueur like triple sec or maraschino to sweeten the pill, just a man and his whiskey to the old way. And the old way is and should always be like that: a lump in the glass, two drops of Angostura, a bit of soda to dissolve, some muddler pounding, and then add the ice, you let the whiskey come in, mix well but gently and squeeze a lemon peel over the cocktail and then you can decorate with a maraschino cherry, a slice of orange and lemon peel.
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