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Old Fashioned

A sugar cube and a few drops of bitters let the whiskey open up slowly.

Home-bar collection version

For one serving

Ingredients

  • Sugar

    Or 5 ml of syrup

    1 cube
  • Angostura Bitters
    2 dashes
  • Bourbon

    Rye whiskey also works

    45 ml / 1.52 US fl oz

US fl oz amounts are rounded; use ml for exact measures.

To garnishOrange twist, Cherry

Make it

  1. Place a sugar cube in the bottom of the glass, add bitters and a few drops of water, then crush and stir until dissolved.
  2. Add a large ice cube and pour in whiskey.
  3. Stir gently with a bar spoon for about 30 seconds.
  4. Express the orange peel's oils over the rim and drop it into the glass with a cherry.

Behind the drink

An American newspaper's 1806 definition of a cocktail was spirits, sugar, water and bitters. As variations grew, guests wanting the original ordered one “old-fashioned,” giving it its name.

Recipe reference

Adapted from the IBA recipe; see the ingredient notes for home-bar adjustments.

iba-world.com ↗