Latest Drink Recipe
In my opinion, one of the greatest triumphs of the cocktail renaissance is the rediscovery of the classic Old Fashioned. I’ve often spoken of how at some point after the repeal of Prohibition, the Old Fashioned became lost and possibly confused with a long-forgotten drink called a Smash (basically a tarted-up Mint Julep covered in fruit), a mere husk of its former, glorious self.
For decades, bartenders just like me served a limp, weak concoction consisting of a half-muddled sugar cube, a mashed-up neon red cherry and orange, a splash of whiskey, and some soda water drowning the results.
With a little luck, and a lot of hard work, that’s all changed with the renewed interest in classic cocktails. Now at any given night at my bar you can find literally a dozen people sipping on two ounces bourbon touched with a teaspoon of sugar and two dashes of bitters, garnished with a simple orange twist over a couple big ice cubes.
But don’t try to pull that bullshit with the good people of the Great State of Wisconsin, where the Brandy Old Fashioned rules supreme. It’s not the same drink as above, it just shares a name. And if you make it right, really right, it’s a damn delicious cocktail and worthy of examination.
Being located in a hotel, we’re used to serving folks from all over the world. And the first time I witnessed a guest from Wisconsin stare blankly as one of my bartenders handed over two ounces of Cognac touched with a teaspoon of sugar and two dashes of bitters and garnished with a simple orange twist over a couple big ice cubes, I knew some further training was in order.
So in the name of making cocktails – all cocktails – with as much of our hearts as we can offer, I present to you what I believe to be the perfect Brandy Old Fashioned… Wisconsin-style.
I start with an old fashioned glass I’ve chilled in the freezer. Call it a tumbler, call it a double rocks glass, or call it a bucket, it’s a glass you’re familiar with. To that I add two dashes of Angostura bitters and a teaspoon of sugar. If I’m in a hurry I use a 2:1 simple syrup, but if I’m going to spend some time, I use a sugar cube. The sugar cube is preferable here because it’s going to add some friction to the muddling we’re about to do. Brace yourselves, cocktail “nerds”.
Next I’ll take a thick-cut orange wedge, and a cherry. The usual suspect here is a grocery store maraschino cherry, but I always choose a brandied Amarena cherry. Remember, you’re going to get out what you put in, so a quality cherry is going to make the drink that much better.
I muddle the sugar, bitters, orange wedge and cherry into a thick paste, careful not to touch the orange peel too much as it’ll bring unwanted bitterness to the party – just work around the peel and pulverize that orange meat.
Your standard Brandy Old Fashioned brandy of choice is Korbel: cheap California brandy. Considering the hundreds of thousands of cases they ship to Wisconsin every year, it might be considered sacrosanct to use anything else. But if you want to do this right, really right, then do yourself a favor and use some good Cognac. I have my preferred brandy, you have yours.
At this point your typical Wisconsinite barkeep is going to add ice and finish the drink in one of two main ways: sweet or sour. Those who take it sweet will ask for a splash of Sprite or 7-Up, those who take it sour get a dose of Collins Mix or Squirt. To me, it’s just a way of watering down the drink, so I leave out the soda and take a more… cocktail-y method.
Crushed ice is a must for me whenever I whip up a Brandy Old Fashioned. I always skip the soda and let the tiny shards of ice do the work, taming those strong, sweet flavors and turning this into a drink you can sip slowly.
As for a garnish, most will throw a “flag” of an orange wedge and a cherry spiked through with a wooden toothpick, but my take here is that those things are already in the drink, so I skip ‘em. Besides, how pretty does that look without the goofy fruit salad perched over the top?
You know, it’s something to enjoy sipping on while you cook up some bratwurst and onions in a boiling kettle of beer before everyone comes over to watch the Packers game. Drink accordingly.
Brandy Old Fashioned
1 sugar cube or 1 tsp 2:1 simple syrup
2 dashes Angostura bitters
1 orange wedge
1 cherry, preferably Amarena or Maraska
2 oz brandy or Cognac
In a chilled old fashioned glass, muddle the sugar, bitters, orange wedge and cherry into a thick paste, careful not to work the orange peel. Add brandy or Cognac, stir, and fill glass with crushed ice and serve.
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About Me
My name is Jeff Morgenthaler and I'm the bar manager at Clyde Common in Portland, Oregon.
I've been tending bar since 1996 and writing about it since 2004. I started tending bar while getting my degree in Interior Architecture, and slowly I came to the conclusion that bartending was what I really loved, and that I might as well drop everything and focus on being a professional bartender. Over the years I have strived, both behind the bar and with this website, to elevate the experience of having a drink from something mundane to something more culinary.
The writing I do here is intended as a work in progress. My recipes are like my opinions: they are constantly being revised and refined as I work them through my mind and my fingers. Comments and participation are encouraged, so please don't feel the need to tread lightly here.
10 Dec 2009 at 8:21 AM 1. Kevin L
Nice and simple. I like it!
Now to find some pomegranate molasses…
10 Dec 2009 at 8:50 AM 2. dave
A cool alternative to reducing with heat is freeze-concentrating:
http://bostonapothecary.com/?p=95
Probably a bit labor intensive for a bar, but quite fine for home use.
10 Dec 2009 at 9:26 AM 3. Carlos T
Great recipe Jeff. I’m definitely making this for New Year’s. I love the simplicity….Right up my alley.
and about the pomegranates…..
Just last week I learned how to properly prepare to eat a pomegranate. Turns out I was doing it all wrong.
1. Cut fruit in half.
2. Pound the outside of halfed fruit, with a knife or something, and seeds will easily fall out.
Well, I thought it was simple. Y’all might of known that already…..but since my cable network doesn’t broadcast the Muslim Grandmother’s advice channel, I didn’t know it.
10 Dec 2009 at 9:33 AM 4. John Claude
I always wondered about the removing the seeds bit and all that jazz. When I was messing with pomegranates at Yakuza the juicer worked just beautifully to get a metric shit ton of juice out the fruit.
Where in Portland can I source the molasses?
10 Dec 2009 at 11:12 AM 5. Rocky
Lazy is best!
10 Dec 2009 at 11:56 AM 6. sylvan
@Jean Claude
I know you can find pomegranate molasses at Foti Deli on E Burnside or the little grocery attached to Ya Hala out at SE Stark around 80th. However, like Jeffrey said, almost any Mediterranean or Latin American grocery will have it.
10 Dec 2009 at 12:19 PM 7. Jesh M
Basically the same recipe i use, but I like to use the POM/Cherry juice that they make. I haven’t seen a really good grenadine in the stores, but I saw that Scrappy’s is making one now. Has anyone tried it?
10 Dec 2009 at 1:30 PM 8. Tiare
Hands down brilliant.I`m one of those cocktailbloggers using the picking-out-the-seed-under-water method;-)and ok, its just for my homebar so its ok but if it can be easier the better because i`m lazy too.
Second, i use dried hibiscus flowers to get that deep red color and fresh tropical taste and its fabulous, i have never turned back after that,but..your using of orange flower water and pomegranate molasses intrigues me and i luckily have those things in my fridge right now and as a matter of fact, my grenadine is finished too, so you have now given me a chance to try out a new interesting way to make one of my favorite ingredients and i thank you.
Cheers!
T
10 Dec 2009 at 3:38 PM 9. Damon Fodge
Thanks for that, man. I was never too impressed with my own attempts at homemade grenadine. This is definitely on my to-do bar list.
10 Dec 2009 at 3:46 PM 10. John Claude
Sylvan.
Thanks for the specific locations! I’ll be sure to put those to use ASAP.
10 Dec 2009 at 4:09 PM 11. Janice
Thanks for another great post. I’m another one of those who takes all the seeds out, although I use Tiare’s trick of steeping the seeds with hibiscus flowers to make the grenadine ruby red. Its really pretty. Never thought to try orange flower water.
10 Dec 2009 at 4:41 PM 12. Jeffrey Morgenthaler
Thanks, everyone.
Tiare and Janice – The hibiscus is a nice idea, but if you’re mainly using it for color then I think you’re headed down the wrong path. The color of pomegranate juice is rich and vibrant when it hasn’t been boiled. Try the juicer trick, I promise great results.
11 Dec 2009 at 1:55 AM 13. Tony
Nice recipe, nice method!
It got me thinking, where am I going to find this molasses. All the stores around me are south American stores and I have never heard about it here in Brazil :)~
11 Dec 2009 at 7:32 AM 14. David
Awesome recipe. In terms of technique, if you’ve got one of those little battery operated milk frothers then try the cold-process using that little guy to mix it all up. No method is easier that I’ve found. And the frother can cocktail multitask and give you an amazing “dry shake” for any fizz or sour you are adding egg whites to.
11 Dec 2009 at 9:24 PM 15. Matt
I tried using pomegranate molasses previously (actually the brand you have pictured)but it left my grenadine an unattractive brownish color, even with a small amount. Did I have a bad batch?
For now I’m using Ferrara (best commercial brand I’ve found) or cold process with POM.
11 Dec 2009 at 9:28 PM 16. Jeffrey K
How long would it last with the vodka?
I’m the only one who drinks around here, so I’m always keeping track of stuff like that…
12 Dec 2009 at 6:01 AM 17. Dominik MJ
Brilliant post.
I was always against this pomegranate water maceration method – but this sounds like a plan.
Though – does the orange flower water not distract from the taste of the grenadine?
Now I have to get this kind of juicers [I don't think that rotary juicers are working?] and have to compare the the [European] Monin Pomegranate syrup. This is pretty good staff as well – and I can be even lazier…
13 Dec 2009 at 4:08 PM 18. Evan Martin
For those of you who can’t find pomegranate molasses or want to make your own, here’s Alton Brown’s recipe http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/grilled-leg-of-lamb-with-pomegranate-molasses-recipe/index.html
It takes a long time but is a little bit better than the bottled stuff.
13 Dec 2009 at 6:41 PM 19. Jason
Jeffrey – what a super simple recipe for a great result, 1 pyrex, 1 spoon – no mess no fuss.
thanks for sharing!
14 Dec 2009 at 3:31 AM 20. Trevor Easter
great recipe… just used your grenadine post in a gin daisy tonight…. got a double thumbs up from the customer, thank you. also i would like to note i was working a private event in SF and someone asked me for a great gin drink… i made them a richmond gimlet (yes i dropped your name along with my smile when i served it) and the bartender next to me asked what was that and i said “a richmond gimlet” and he (marco dionysos) said nice work jeffrey… thought you would like that.
14 Dec 2009 at 4:45 PM 21. Tiare
Yes i will definetily try the juicing,its brilliant and no..i`m not using the hibiscus just for color and if you haven`t tried it i recommend it warmly because it adds a crisp tropical floral flavour that is just hands down lovely.
I believe i may end up using both the juice and the hibiscus.
I also suspect that after i`ve used my juicer (why didn´t i think about that before???) i will not turn back to the underwater seed picking.
T
16 Dec 2009 at 1:41 PM 22. Mike McSorley
The Scrappy’s Grenadine is darn good. Nice and bright, good viscosity, and I think it’s made cold process.
Expensive.
Hard to Get.
I made some tasty pomegranite molasses while trying to reverse engineer the scrappys, but it never came together; so I reduced it down and was pleased with this recipe as a molasses
1 quart fresh pomegranite juice
1.25 quart (or so) sugar
1.25 oz allspice dram
1 375 ml bottle korean pomegranite wine
(see below url)
http://www.21food.com/showroom/56473/product/Pomegranate-Wine.html
4 oz stirrings blood orange bitters.
Heat on high until boiling. reduce heat to medium. let reduce for about a half hour (until the bubbles start to climb up the inside of the pan.
mixture will be concentrated and viscous after cooling.
Works great in a la floridita!
18 Dec 2009 at 11:52 PM 23. John Park
Thanks Jeffrey, this looks good. Now tell me, in your Jack Rose, lemon or lime?
-JP
01 Jan 2010 at 7:57 AM 24. Jim Rees
I realize I’m preaching to the choir here, but if you don’t want to make your own, you can still do way better than buying imitation grenadine at your local liquor store. I use Rieme but almost anything from France will do. You’ll probably have to mail order from Amazon or other good importer.
Same goes for Orgeat and almost any syrup you can think of.
07 Jan 2010 at 7:00 PM 25. Federico Cuco
Jeffrey thank you very much for the instructions to prepare granandina.
I made 2 bottles
My clients in Buenos Aires, are very happy.
Greatly improves all cocktails containing granandine.
In my opinion you’re the best teacher of bartenders on the planet.
Happy New Year
Cuco
12 Jan 2010 at 8:35 AM 26. Brad
I’m going to try making a batch this weekend. I’m considering using a pomegranate concentrate from GNC called Jensen. I figure I can add enough water and simple syrup to get the flavor I want. Has anyone tried using concentrate instead of juice? Also, has anyone tried using agave syrup instead of sugar?
13 Jan 2010 at 6:19 PM 27. Rocky
Have three batches cooling right now, one made with syrup, and two made with concentrate of different dilutions. We’ll see how they taste. They’re definitely not pretty though.
14 Jan 2010 at 12:45 PM 28. Jeffrey Morgenthaler
Rocky – what sort of mess have you made of a project as simple as grenadine? The solutions you have should be bright and pretty – if not, then you’ve done something very, very wrong. I fear, not only for you, my friend, but for the people of Seattle, Washington.
Good luck, and may God have mercy on your soul.
25 Jan 2010 at 7:59 PM 29. john
I made this recipe just now it it came out as advertised – delicious and attractive. I had only one old pomegranate in the fridge that yielded only half a cup of juice, but the math was easy and the results superb.
I mixed up two Scofflaws (from Dr Cocktail book) for my wife and myself, one with Rose’s and one with this recipe. We dumped the Rose’s one and shared the one with the new Grenadine!
10 Mar 2010 at 7:24 PM 30. Jim
I gave this recipe a try with mixed results (and a whole lot of mess!) I used my Krups juicer and (3) whole poms resulted in barely (1) cup of juice. The mess was ridiculous. My microwave took 4 minutes to dissolve all the sugar. It ended up bubbling over and left a sticky pom-a-mess all over the interior. The end product was quite delicious, but in the future I’ll do (3) things:
1) Buy POM juice from the supermarket instead of juicing fresh poms.
2) Dissolve the sugar on the stove in a saucepan.
3) Use less Orange Blossom Water. That stuff is uber-fragrant and a little goes a long long way.
13 Apr 2010 at 6:01 PM 31. Michael Maier
http://www.strirrings.com
Stirrings makes a real grenadine with pure sugar (not HFCS). I think it has a good flavor to it.
I like a small drizzle in a good vodka for a simple cocktail.
I wouldn’t mind trying the fresh recipe here though. Sounds very good and I love making bar fixings fresh (fresh sour mix is killer).
23 May 2010 at 11:20 AM 32. Jeff Frane
OK, that was ridiculously easy, one might even say “simple.” The kicker is the pomegranate molasses, which is obscenely good on its own.
I had previously used the reduction method and not only was it time-consuming, the resulting syrup was much too thick, especially since I was keeping it in the fridge. I feel a Picon Punch coming on.
For Portland-area shoppers, I found the ingredients at Barbur World Foods, which may be my new home.
06 Jun 2010 at 3:17 PM 33. Ginty
Hey, just wondering is there a difference between Orange Flower Water and Orange BLOSSOM Water.
The Blossom Water is at my local supermarket, so was unsure if it’s the same product or not.
06 Jun 2010 at 4:38 PM 34. john
It’s the same thing – just a matter of translation. An orange blossom IS an orange flower, it’s just that different importers have the same product name translated different ways.
25 Jul 2010 at 12:40 PM 35. Omar
My wife and I were wondering how long is the shell life of the grenadine?
26 Jul 2010 at 8:54 AM 36. john
I made mine 6 months ago and used some last week – it still tasted and smelled great.
I keep it in a smallish glass bottle in the fridge, and when it gets low enough I move into into a new smaller clean glass bottle.
27 Jul 2010 at 10:29 AM 37. Mr. Exclusive
I came here because I wanted to make a Grenade, not Grenadine! >.> (Curses his dyslexia as he closes this random grenade recipe)
01 Nov 2010 at 10:05 PM 38. Dave
Hust used this method to make grenadine, and it turned out great! I might use your ginger beer recipe once I get the equipment! Thanks from this poor grad student for some economical and fun things to make.
06 Jan 2011 at 3:51 PM 39. Steve Garcia
Excellent recipe. I made 2 modifications.
I used Hangar 1 Mandarin Blossom for preservative & I steeped 2 Hibiscus tea bags for 5 minutes as the mixture cooled. The tea adds more vibrant color and also cleans up the finish, while the vodka gives a bit more depth to the flavor profile. CHEERS!
17 Mar 2012 at 3:39 PM 40. Dusty
Just made this! So good.
07 Sep 2012 at 8:07 PM 41. Agavni
I made this today but instead of orange blossom water, I used rose water. It has a nice floral under tone. Thanks for the recipe.
13 Dec 2012 at 12:00 PM 42. Suzanne
Just made this and it is wonderful. I used my juicer attachment for my food processor and found the pom. molasses and blossom water at my local Whole Foods store. It took me less than half an hour with clean up to make this. Thank you for your time on this recipe. Happy Cocktails!
23 Dec 2012 at 9:31 PM 43. Emily
I just made some of this for a Christmas present! My only complaint was entirely my fault: I used a juicer attachment on a magic bullet. Don’t do that. Get a legitimate juicer.
I planned on doubling the recipe, but it turns out my four pomegranates yielded a bit less than two cups of juice. When I make this again I might try to see if I can find cheap pomegranate juice at the market where I got the molasses and orange blossom water, so I don’t have to do the juicing myself.