Category: Cognac

Whether you’re an accomplished at-home bartender or tend to leave it to the professionals, we’re sure you’ll agree the Old Fashioned is a no-nonsense cocktail staple. Coinciding with Old Fashioned Week, running from 2 November, here’s our take on how to perfect the historic serve…

Of all the classic cocktails, the Old Fashioned is as classic as they come; a serve entrenched in the very beginnings of cocktail history. The first written recipe record of spirit, sugar and bitters dates back to 1802, with the world’s first celebrity bartender, Jerry Thomas, proclaiming it the ‘Whiskey Cocktail’ in 1862. A little over 30 years later, Manhattan bartender George J. Kappeler lists that tried and trusted trio of ingredients as a Brandy Old Fashioned in his book Modern American Drinks, coining the term on paper.

It’s now officially the best-selling classic cocktail in the world – its recent resurgence is often attributed to Mad Men’s Don Draper, who swaggers through the sixties with a tumbler in-hand – and also, unofficially, the most contentious. Sugar cube or simple syrup? Lemon or orange garnish? One big chunk of ice, or a cluster of smaller cubes? How many times should it be stirred? Bourbon, rye, or another spirit altogether? I started making it three hours ago, and it’s still not ready? Good lord, are you muddling cherries? It goes on.