Wow … how is it that you can go on vacation and come back even more tired than when you left? Typical for theSpeakista and his clan. We realized while lounging at the vast family compound on the left coast that we had yet to post a summary, final wrap-up post for our award winning series on the venerable Old Fashioned, Old Fashioned’s in October and so here it is.
What a time it was … 15 days of Old Fashioned’s with some 17 different recipes profiled. Everything from rum, to rye to gin was used as was a plethora of bitters and sweetening agents.
Below we list our top three favorites of the series although, with maybe one exception (and even then still not bad), we loved them all.
1. The Cubed Old Fashioned – Jamie Boudreau’s amazing creation … an Old Fashioned within an Old Fashioned. I’m not sure what took me so long to finally make this drink but now that I have, and experimented with it several times, I’m a huge fan (and believer). The original version is fantastic and we think our little creation isn’t so bad itself.
2. Oaxaca Old Fashioned – Phil Ward’s seminal creation, simple on paper and amazingly complex on the palate. This version of the classic pairs that vegetal powerhouse tequila with its smoky, kissing cousin Mezcal together with agave syrup and orange bitters … simple beauty in a glass.
3. North Garden – A drink that has long been in our “frequent” rotation of drinks to make at the home base and with out a doubt the single most imbibed drink I’ve had while at Death & Co.. Created by Jason Littrell, a marriage of spirits has never been so oddly wonderfully perfectly matched before … bonded applejack, bourbon and our beloved Islay are mixed up with a dash or two of bitters and syrup in an Old Fashioned framework for a simply wonderful sipping experience.
The following is a recap of the remaining contestants in order of their appearance:
- The Old Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail – prepared two ways, one using a muddled sugar cube and the other using a lush sugar syrup, this drink epitomizes what is great about classic mixology … perfect pairings of ingredients in a simple preparation to yield amazing results
- The Old Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail (soda water variants) – two versions of this venerable drink were made taking head on, that most classic of mixology battles … to use or not to use soda water. We draw first on the book Speakeasy for a version that would make us shun our aversion to soda water-based Old Fashioned’s and a second that makes Don Draper swoon
- The Rum and Rye Old Fashioned – Powerfully flavorful spirits, a bonded rye and high proof Rhum Agricole, are blended with Demerara sugar syrup and bitters
- American Trilogy – Created by rock star mixologists, this drink just missed our top three and frankly (and should be) is likely tied with the North Garden for our love. An amazing, yet simple blending of rye and bonded applejack mixed in the classic Old Fashioned method using a sugar cube dissolved with bitters and water, this drink sings on the palate
- French Connection – the Old Fashioned framework gets twisted a bit and whiskey takes a high road to the amazing qualities of cognac. Cognac is mixed with fruit, bitters and sugar
- Scotch Old Fashioned – a riff on a riff, theSpeakista melds perfect partners in a glass … a lush aged single malt, honey syrup and Peychaud’s bitters
- Rum Old Fashioned – our current “house version” of this classic variant pairing Zacapa 23 year old and Smith & Cross rums with cane and vanilla syrups and two kinds of bitters
- Elder Fashioned – created by Joaquin Simo and Alex Day at Death & Co in NYC, this drink shakes up the mix completely. Gin (no whiskey is used herein) and St-Germain Elderflower liqueur make wonderful music in a glass
- Traditional Elderfashioned – bourbon is paired this time with bitters and Elderflower liqueur
- The Winthorp – created by theSpeakista for a cocktail contest honoring a founding city of this amazing country of ours … this drink shines with bold and brash flavors all inside an Old Fashioned framework. A bonded rye, Irish whiskey, Meletti amaro and muddle sugar form the back bone of this OF riff
- The Modern Old Fashioned – a drink created at NYC’s The Modern pairing bourbon, simple syrup, pear liqueur and bitters with lemon juice
- The Fashioned-old – another theSpeakista original this time highlighting malty flavors. Blended scotch and Genever get mixed with homemade stout syrup for something interesting
After all that writing and a long flight yesterday, I think a drink is in order. We’ll see you back here soon.
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