“An stimulating liquorcomposed of spirits of any kind, with sugar, water and bitters”.
This is the first text in which the word appears cocktailis from 1806 and refers to a specific drink: the Old fashioned.
Strictly speaking, the word Old fashioned referred to many types of primitive cocktails, in which the distillates were mixed with sugar, the first and easiest way to camouflage the taste of alcohol. Today, however, an Old Fashioned is almost always made with bourbon, which is also, in all likelihood, the first drink used in cocktail making in the United States.
There’s a lot theories about its originbut according to the historian Robert Simonson, which has an entire book on the subject, Old Fashioned most likely originated around Chicago, the closest city to the original manufacturing area of this type of whisky. And now that we know the history of the world’s first cocktail, let’s learn how to make it.
To make this cocktail you don’t need a cocktail shaker, just a wide glass and icein which we are going to combine all the ingredients.
We put a couple of rocks in the glass and add 60 ml of bourbon, 7 ml of sugar syrup and two or three drops of Angostura. Stir for 10 seconds and decorate with a orange twist, lemon or both. It is also common to top the cocktail with a candied cherry.
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With what to accompany the Old Fashioned
The Old Fashioned has no mystery, but it is a cocktail that does not fail and from which many drinks come. These same proportions can also be used with other types of distillates such as Scotch whisky, brandy or rum. Like all cocktails, it does not need any accompaniment, although some fried almonds will always go well.
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