‘The godfather of all cocktails’, the art of how to make an Old Fashioned may be easy to learn, but it’s difficult to master.
On the one hand, they’re as simple as they come — you’ve got your spirit (preferably a good bourbon), sugars (preferably a carefully home-made syrup), bitters (for a little spicy kick) and water (preferably in frozen form, in a block of ice as large as your glass can fit). Stir, pour, drink. Job done.
Or so you’d think.
While anyone with even the simplest home bar should be able to cook up the cocktail, it’s all too easy to cock it up, too. Too much booze. Not enough ice. Too sugary, too syrupy — or too-overcooked altogether, when artisan makers get the smokers and the maple branches out.
So to get the exact lowdown on how to make the perfect Old Fashioned, we’ve gone in search of expert help. Benji Purslow is the European Brand Educator for Kentucky’s Heaven Hill distillery — home of not only Heaven Hill bourbon and whiskey, but also Elijah Craig and Old Fitzgerald, too.
If ever a man knew his way around an Old Fashioned, it’s Benji, with years of experience making (and drinking) the classic. We quizzed him for the key to Old Fashioned perfection — and he let us in on 15 top tips. Cheers!
1. First things first — what are the absolute basics I need to make a straight-forward Old Fashioned?
Nothing fancy, just the essentials! Old Fashioned is actually more of a style of drink rather than a specific cocktail. It was said that a cocktail was spirit, bitters, sugar and water (plus ice, at least today), and therein lies the essentials. This was in a time when we had punches, slings, cobblers and so on, so what we call an Old Fashioned today, just started life as a “cocktail”. As drinks developed during prohibition with syrups and fruit juices to mask the questionable quality of the spirits available, people started to refer to the drink as an “Old Fashioned” cocktail, meaning the classic way of making a cocktail. For example, the Elijah Craig signature Old Fashioned is made with 50ml Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon, 10ml Simple Syrup, 3 Dashes of Bitters and garnish with an orange twist.
2. For those of us who tend to free-pour with "enthusiasm," what’s the optimum booze-to-everything-else ratio for an Old Fashioned?
I don’t like my Old Fashioned’s too sweet, so I tend to use around 10% sugar to the amount of booze (50ml Whiskey, 5ml Sugar). This depends on the spirit you’re using though, and if you were using rye, I would increase this to around 15% on the sugar side. Bitters only ever need to be 3 dashes (around 9 drops), these can overpower if used too heavily.
3. Beyond the usual suspects, what's the weirdest (but surprisingly good) Old Fashioned ingredient you've ever secretly experimented with? Any underrated bitters? Any wild card sweeteners? Don't worry, your secrets are safe with us...
We’ve held cocktail competitions based around the Old Fashioned drink, and I’ve worked in American Whiskey for 9 years, so there isn’t much I haven’t tried in an Old Fashioned. My personal favourite is with coffee and banana liqueurs and chocolate bitters. I enjoy some of the “washed” variants, where fats from food have been used to wash the spirit — bacon is a classic in this area, but I also once had one with fois gras…that was a bit too rich for me.
4. Is there a specific, almost mystical stirring implement that truly unlocks the Old Fashioned's hidden potential, or will a regular spoon do?
Quick answer…no! It’s really about controlling the dilution of the drink — this is why it is stirred, not shaken, to make sure you hit the desired dilution/temperature. At home, I tend to start with one shot of whiskey, plus bitters and sugar, and stir with three ice cubes. Then I add the second shot of whiskey and add another three ice cubes and stir. Then top off the drink with more so it is sitting “proud” above the wash-line. This will help it not continue to dilute as much when you have finished making it. The ideal amount of liquid should be one finger from the top of the glass.
6. Let's settle this: Is stirring an Old Fashioned with a twig from a Kentucky oak tree considered "artisanal" or "just trying too hard"? Are there any techniques during the making of the cocktail that actually make a difference to the end result?
If you’re stirring it with something like a twig, then yes, it probably would make a difference…not a good one though! I wouldn’t recommend it. There are other techniques that make a difference — if you muddle cherry and orange in the bottom, like in a Wisconsin Old Fashioned, this will make a big difference. Also, if you shake, it will change the texture of the drink, but again, not recommended.
7. What's the official Elijah Craig stance on garnishes? Are we talking a single, dignified orange peel, or enough fruit to open a small greengrocer?
Whatever adds to the drink, really. I use lemon, orange and cherry, as I like the freshness of two citrus oils, and then as I have it a little drier than most, the cherry helps give a punch of sweetness when I want it. When it comes to garnishes, I’m very much in the camp of what my old head chef used to say: “if you can’t consume it, it shouldn’t be in it”. That’s Tim “Tonto” Yates sometime around 2008 (and he drank A LOT of my Old Fashioneds!)
8. Old Fashioned glassware comes in many shapes and sizes. Is there a key style to go for, or will any old tumbler work?
As long as it can fit in the glass, you’re all good. There is a famous video on YouTube of a lady making an Old Fashioned in a pint glass, and that probably is too much. Keep it in a rocks glass, ideally.
9. We've all had a less-than-stellar Old Fashioned. What's the biggest "oops" moment you've witnessed (or committed) in the pursuit of perfection?
Over-sweetening is really the worst. At home, this can easily be corrected by simply adding more booze, but in a bar, they are not keen on that, and the drink can become way too syrup-y. The other one for me is burning herbs for the smoke. I know it sounds good, and looks dramatic when a bartender uses fire, but smoking the glass is rarely well executed. If you are going to add smoke, this needs to be added to a decanter and the liquid washed around the smoke before pouring in a glass. Burnt twigs in a glass is not enjoyable…
10. When it comes to ice in an Old Fashioned, are we aiming for an iceberg, a glacier, or just a little cube to make a happy little clinking sound?
The biggest faux pas I see with at home cocktails is not enough ice. Ice really is your friend. The more ice added, the less the drink will dilute and become watery. It’s always way more than what consumers realise. When you’re shaking a cocktail, it should be 2/3rds ice in the shaker. Guests regularly complain there is too much ice in their drinks, but we are doing it for good reason, and that is most definitely not to rip you off — it’s to make the best version of the drink that can be.
11. If giant blocks of ice aren’t readily available, or it’s already chilly outside, is there a warming winter spin on the Old Fashioned worth adding to your cocktail-making arsenal?
For me, hot buttered bourbon is the one. It’s not really an Old Fashioned per se, but you can use your whiskey in a similar way. Heat up 10g of butter, along with some baking spices (cinnamon, star anise, cloves) and add 2 teaspoons of brown sugar, 50ml apple or pineapple juice and 2 shots of whiskey and stir until warm (do not boil). Serve in a tea cup.
For something special of the bourbon variety, you’re in good hands with this small batch Kentucky straight from Elijah Craig, among the masters of American whiskeys. It was bottled at a whopping 63.5% which is actually, somehow, one of the weaker editions. There’s plenty of vanilla and maple flavour but a spicy heat from the booze, too. If you're into making Old Fashioned cocktails, you'll be hard pressed to find a better spirit to build them with.
12. We know bourbon reigns supreme in an Old Fashioned, but if a curious friend dared you to make an Old Fashioned with Scotch, would you secretly judge them, or would you give them the greenlight?
I’m a bartender first and foremost, so I believe you can make a cocktail with any spirit, as long as you are improving, not worsening the drink. Bourbon typically works better because of the sweeter toffee, vanilla notes, and the robustness of the spirit. Scotch can be more delicate, and therefore loses some of its character in a cocktail.
13. If you had to pick one Elijah Craig expression to be the lifelong companion of your Old Fashioned, which would it be and what qualities make it the perfect pour?
Easy — the regular small batch. Before I worked at Heaven Hill, I was already singing the praises of this Bourbon for an Old Fashioned. It’s 8-12 years old, which brings out Lignin, which is high in vanillin, and lactone, which gives it a creamy mouthfeel, as well as the backbone of oak from the extra aging. It’s higher in proof compared to a lot of other Bourbons at 47% abv (94 proof in old money) too, which means it can stand up to the dilution and chilling that happens in an Old Fashioned.
14. When making an Old Fashioned, what's one "absolute no-go" that would make you dramatically gasp, and one "must-do" that you swear by?
Absolute no-go, would be shaking it. And the must-do for me is making demerara sugar syrup in advance. Demerara sugar is made with molasses and therefore the caramel notes of the sugar pairs perfectly with the Bourbon. I don’t like white sugar in my Old Fashioneds…the same as my coffee.
15. If you found yourself on a wild goose chase for the perfect Old Fashioned in London, where would be your first stop?
To be honest, it’s rare you find a bad one these days, as long as you’re going to a proper cocktail bar. I drink mostly in Soho, so Swift, Dram, No.3 Greek street would be my go to’s, as they all have a great range of whiskies.
Two must-make Old Fashioned recipes
Here’s Benji’s favourite takes on the Old Fashioned — one a classic, the other a ‘twisted’ spin on the traditional recipe…:
The Classic:
- 50ml Elijah Craig Small Batch
- 5ml Demerara Sugar Syrup
- 2 Dash Orange Bitters
- 1 Dash Angostura Bitters
Garnished with orange and lemon peel and a Fabbri Amarena Cherry (these cost a fair bit, but are the dons of cocktail cherries, they also come in a lovely jar that you can reuse.)
The Twisted: Old Fashioned Pistol
- 50ml Elijah Craig Small Batch
- 10ml Crème de Banane
- 5ml Coffee liqueur
- 2 dash Chocolate bitters
- 1 dash Angostura bitters
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.