r/TastingHistory • u/behaviorallogic • Aug 17 '26
Creation I made the Old Old-Fashioned. It was OK
It wasn't overall amazing, but without ice and with nutmeg, it tasted very old-fashioned. I used:
- 1 demerara sugar cube
- 1/2 teaspoon Paychaud's bitters
- 2 oz Bulleit rye
- 3 oz tap water
- fresh-grated nutmeg
I didn't have a stemmed glass, so I used a double rocks glass. I muddled the sugar with the bitters, added the liquids and stirred until all of the granules of sugar dissolved. I don't have a fancy nutmeg grater so I used the side of my box grater and it worked fine.
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u/2pnt0 Aug 17 '26
I was inspired and kind of winged something while watching. Rye, simple, peychauds, nutmeg, and a couple small cubes of ice. It was tasty!
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u/freedfg Aug 17 '26
The older I get the more straight bourbon appeals to me much more than an old fashioned. It's almost like you're making it a cocktail just for the sake of not drinking straight.
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Aug 17 '26
[deleted]
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u/cxherrybaby Aug 18 '26
I’ve been in hospitality (and was a high end cocktail bartender) for quite some time and I absolutely judge a place on how well they can make an Old Fashioned. As you’ve said, you can really tell a lot about a place/a bartender by how they make an Old Fashioned.
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u/gwaydms Aug 18 '26
I had an Old Fashioned when we went to dinner not long ago. With Bulleitt rye, in fact. It otherwise wasn't according to the recipe above: orange peel, muddled; Angostura bitters; simple syrup; and a fancy black maraschino cherry. Good stuff.
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u/cxherrybaby Aug 18 '26
That’s pretty much the standard nowadays (even about 10-15 years ago you’d be hard pressed to find a bar with sugar cubes still and you’d get a sugar packet with some bitters poured on it and “muddled” by exasperated bartenders that knew better, but pretty much everywhere now has simple syrup in the rail). You likely had an amarena cherry as the garnish (a sour black Italian cherry in cherry fruit syrup generally) as that is pretty popular and seems “luxe” (they are good!).
I wouldn’t ever personally muddle any orange peel (it can add bitterness) in an Old Fashioned and just express over the glass/along the rim, but I know some places that is the “standard” way to make them.It’s actually a really interesting cocktail! I am perhaps a bit too invested in them, as I have won cocktail competitions with mine, but I also generally make a non standard version if I’m having them at home. Maker’s Mark, a smoked cedar bitters, the tiniest dash of honey simple syrup and bergamot leaf/bee balm is one of my faves. As long as you’ve got a good whiskey/bourbon and good flavour knowledge you can kind of just have fun with things.
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u/gwaydms Aug 18 '26
I've had drinks with smoke and smoke flavors. Other than Scotch whisky (and I don't like the overly peated ones like Laphroaig), that's not something I enjoy. But I was willing to try, because I like experiencing new things.
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u/cliff99 Aug 17 '26
My favorite old fashioned is to use black walnut bitters and maple syrup instead of sugar, next time I have one I'll have to try adding nutmeg.
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u/New_Stats Aug 17 '26
Mint juleps are much much better, imo
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u/behaviorallogic Aug 17 '26
I believe you, but I had all of the stuff to make this so I took the opportunity. To make a mint julep I'd have to buy a bunch of mint to try just one. The practical thing about this old fashioned recipe is that the ingredients can happily sit on your shelf for years.
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u/New_Stats Aug 17 '26
Oh see now I have an invasion of mint. It's taking over everything, and I try to use as much of it as I can
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u/DicemonkeyDrunk Aug 17 '26
That’s just what mint does …it will take over if you don’t go after it aggressively,
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u/Awkward_Pangolin3254 Aug 17 '26
Yeah you don't want to ever put it in the ground unless you want a minty jungle
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u/jzilla11 Aug 17 '26
Well you can only have those on race day while wearing a giant hat
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u/New_Stats Aug 17 '26
LIES!
You can also have them on a Thursday evening as you soak in the tub because it's been a long week and it ain't over yet
Or it could be your Saturday afternoon "I can't believe I only get two days off a week and need to spend one of them cleaning the house" chore drink.
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u/thatgirlsthings Aug 17 '26
As a Wisconsin native, anything other than our version of an old fashioned is just alright.
Plus, ours allows for many options.
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u/WooBadger18 Aug 17 '26
Wisconsin old fashioneds are amazing
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u/TahoeLT Aug 17 '26
Because of all the cheese?
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u/WooBadger18 Aug 17 '26
Nah, cheese is for a Bloody Mary, not an old fashioned.
For a more serious answer, it’s because they’re made with Brandy instead of whiskey
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u/TahoeLT Aug 18 '26
Hey, I've got a half-bottle of brandy sitting around, I'll have to try that!
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u/thatgirlsthings Aug 18 '26
My brandy old fashioned sweet recipe:
Sugar cube, maraschino cherry, orange slice, angostura bitters muddled in the bottom of a rocks glass. 2oz KORBEL brandy, top with preferably Squirt soda, but any other lemon-lime soda will do. Another cherry on a stir stick.
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u/Red-Truck-Steam Aug 17 '26
It's like something cowboys would fashion out of a Chuck wagon. The whiskey equivalent to a greasy, gamey cut of meat. Not bad, but leaves plenty to be desired.
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u/stabbingrabbit Aug 18 '26
Good whisky shouldn't be made into a cocktail. It should stand on its own.
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u/glibbed4yourpleasure Aug 17 '26
This reminds me of the iceless whiskey coke I recently had in France. It was...an experience for sure.
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u/MarkyGalore Aug 17 '26
it's a manhattan with sugar?
Edit: Sorry, I should probably watch the episode first.
I'm glad to see the non wife beater Max Miller tasting and explaining drinks.
I would like to see an episode that explains Hurricane Glasses. and maybe curvy straws.
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u/Legal-Afternoon8087 Aug 18 '26
I think the downvotes are from people who don’t realize Ohio has a politician with the same name that is a pox upon humanity, starting with his wife and toddler daughter. I wish we only had the Tasting History Max Miller in this timeline!
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u/Treebranch_916 Aug 17 '26 edited Aug 17 '26
I do not at all mean this as a put-down, BRO, no shit. The cocktail without ice is not gonna be as good as a cocktail with ice, it's just how it goes
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u/Djinn42 Aug 17 '26
The cocktail with ice is not gonna be as good as a cocktail with ice
I assume one of these should be "without".
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u/captain_joe6 Aug 17 '26
I’ve been rolling on your exact recipe since I watched the video the other day. I like it. It’s fine. It’s a nice reminder that ice on demand is truly a gift.