The Perfect Old-Fashioned

We all need to have a cocktail or two up our sleeve. Now, your go-to cocktail doesn’t need to have tons of miniature umbrellas sticking out of it, or require a special alcohol that you can only source from one specific artisan maker who recently relocated to a cottage in the Swiss Alps, but it does need to be good.

Originally a breakfast drink (true!) the Old Fashioned fell out of favor and for a long time was considered, frankly, old-fashioned. Thankfully, it’s back en vogue and I think it deserves a spot at the front-and-center of your cocktail repertoire.

I taught myself how to make the — frankly, perfect — Old-Fashioned in Michigan while I was on tour with “The Bodgyuard.” My friend Andrew and I were tired of bartenders across the country ruining the drink by watering it down with too much ice, or throwing in those bright-red faux-maraschino cherries, or adding soda water into the mix (literally the WORST IDEA EVER). We decided that if we were going to spend money to have someone ruin the drink it might as well be us ruining it en route to perfecting it.

Here’s what we learned:

• First, this drink should be nothing but class but top to bottom. No fluorescent fruits. No floaty bits from muddled oranges. No undissolved flecks of Demerara sugar messing up the vibe.
• Second, since the alcohol is going to be sweetened it’s nice to start with something that’s already a bit sweet so the sugar and the alcohol aren’t fighting with each other. Whiskeys and ryes had to go: We were after bourbon.
• Third, the drink cannot be drowning in ice, so you either make it with one huge iceberg of an ice cube, or you mix it with ice and then strain the ice out.

Enjoy! 🥃😀👍🏻

The Perfect Old-Fashioned

• Author: Matthew Smedal
• Prep Time: 3 minutes
• Total Time: 3 minutes
• Yield: 1 cocktail 1x
• Category: Drinks
• Cuisine: American

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Description

Your go-to cocktail doesn’t need to have tons of miniature umbrellas sticking out of it, or require a special alcohol that you can only source from the Swiss Alps, but it does need to be good.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 ounces bourbon (60ml)
• 1/2 tablespoon simple syrup (7 ml)
• 2 dashes Angostura Classic bitters
• 2 dashes Angostura or Regan’s Orange Bitters
• 1 large ice cube
• 1 orange twist
• 2 maraschino cherries

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Instructions

1. Mix Combine the bourbon, simple syrup, and bitters with the ice. Squeeze the orange twist over the glass to help it release it oils and add to the cocktail. Stir 50 times (this is traditional… seriously!). Garnish with 2 maraschino cherries.
2. Serve immediately.

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