I should start this recipe by referring to one of the earliest recipes, written in 1895, that specifies the following:
“Dissolve a small lump of sugar with a little water in a whiskey-glass; add two dashes Angostura bitters, a small piece ice, a piece lemon-peel, one jigger whiskey. Mix with small bar-spoon and serve, leaving spoon in glass.”
Many more recipes followed since these early days. One of the most current ones was shared with me by my close friend Jimmy together with a story.
He used to mix old-fashioned whiskeys at his father’s bar somewhere at the suburbs of New York. His recipe was much enjoyed by elder ladies who were particularly asking for Jimmy’s old fashioned whiskey. This is actually a slight different version from what he shared with us.
Shopping List
- 2 oz/shots rye whiskey (usually Canadian Whiskey) or Bourbon
- juice from 1/2 orange
- 1/2 oz/shot grenadine home made syrup
- 4 dashes Angostura orange bitters
- 1/2 oz/shot maraskino syrup
- 2 maraskino cherries
- 1 orange peel
And now what?
In an old fashioned glass add the orange juice, the Angostura bitters and 1 maraskino cherry. Squeeze the cherry with a pestle.
Fill the glass with ice and add the whiskey and maraskino syrup (this is the liquid where the cherries are preserved in). Stir the mixture with a spoon. Leave the spoon in the glass and top up with the grenadine syrup, maraskino cherry and orange peel.
Cheers!
Kitchen In a Suitcase 