In another nod to the ancestors and not wanting to work too hard for this evening’s cocktail, we went with the Old Fashioned. This is another one I remember the adults drinking at parties when I was a kid. The cherry and the orange in the glass always seemed so exotic to me. And the rich smell of the bourbon mingling with the pipe smoke from my father and grandfather… heady stuff.
This is another super easy one that requires some muddling, which is always fun. And can I say, wow, right to the brain! Starting with a real kick, they get sweeter and easier as they goes down. The combination of bitters and sugar adds that je ne sais quoi dimensionality as they balance and counter each other, just as they do in a Champagne Cocktail.
H&M dispute whether the OF may have been the first American cocktail. Regardless, it’s indeed and oldie. They offer two versions of the history of the OF and say they won’t take sides. I on the other hand will. My fave of the two is the far more interesting one that traces its origins back to the Whiskey Rebellion of the early 1790’s. When the new Federal government levied its very first excise tax on whiskey to raise some money to pay down the national debt, folks on the frontier didn’t take it so well. (Sin taxes? Deficit spending? Regionalism? Tax rebellion? What exactly has changed in 220 years?) Westerners found it particularly onerous arguing it hit their pocketbooks harder than Easterners’ since farmers made whiskey from surplus grain left over from the harvest. Whiskey also operated as an alternate currency since money on the frontier was often scarce. Poor folks were sometimes paid in whiskey. So for them it was also an income tax. When tax officials tried to collect, in many instances the response turned violent. This was particularly the case in the southwestern counties of Pennsylvania where the rebellion was centered. In Kentucky, as it turns out, no one was trying to collect the tax. So some farmers and tavern owners moved their whiskey operations there. When they went, they took with them their recipe for the Old Fashioned.
As a result of this muddled history (yep, hadda do it!) there’s some disagreement about whether the bev was originally made with bourbon or rye. Today however, use whichever is your fave and you’ll not only be correct, but you won’t be disappointed either.
Old Fashioned
2 oz. whiskey
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 t. sugar
Splash of seltzer
In a chilled Old Fashioned glass, muddle sugar, bitters, orange wheel, and a maraschino cherry until the sugar is dissolved. Add whiskey and ice and seltzer. Stir. Optional: garnish with a lemon twist.
This is another super easy one that requires some muddling, which is always fun. And can I say, wow, right to the brain! Starting with a real kick, they get sweeter and easier as they goes down. The combination of bitters and sugar adds that je ne sais quoi dimensionality as they balance and counter each other, just as they do in a Champagne Cocktail.
H&M dispute whether the OF may have been the first American cocktail. Regardless, it’s indeed and oldie. They offer two versions of the history of the OF and say they won’t take sides. I on the other hand will. My fave of the two is the far more interesting one that traces its origins back to the Whiskey Rebellion of the early 1790’s. When the new Federal government levied its very first excise tax on whiskey to raise some money to pay down the national debt, folks on the frontier didn’t take it so well. (Sin taxes? Deficit spending? Regionalism? Tax rebellion? What exactly has changed in 220 years?) Westerners found it particularly onerous arguing it hit their pocketbooks harder than Easterners’ since farmers made whiskey from surplus grain left over from the harvest. Whiskey also operated as an alternate currency since money on the frontier was often scarce. Poor folks were sometimes paid in whiskey. So for them it was also an income tax. When tax officials tried to collect, in many instances the response turned violent. This was particularly the case in the southwestern counties of Pennsylvania where the rebellion was centered. In Kentucky, as it turns out, no one was trying to collect the tax. So some farmers and tavern owners moved their whiskey operations there. When they went, they took with them their recipe for the Old Fashioned.
As a result of this muddled history (yep, hadda do it!) there’s some disagreement about whether the bev was originally made with bourbon or rye. Today however, use whichever is your fave and you’ll not only be correct, but you won’t be disappointed either.
Old Fashioned
2 oz. whiskey
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 t. sugar
Splash of seltzer
In a chilled Old Fashioned glass, muddle sugar, bitters, orange wheel, and a maraschino cherry until the sugar is dissolved. Add whiskey and ice and seltzer. Stir. Optional: garnish with a lemon twist.
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