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.
15 Feb 2012 at 10:59 AM 1. Mutineer Magazine
Great post and so true. The fanciest tools in the world are useless if you don’t know what goes into a drink.
15 Feb 2012 at 11:04 AM 2. Federico Cuco
Simply Fantastic, a great reality. My first “Head Cantinero” use to had a red notebook, my grandfather who was a bartender, also had a notebook.
It is also important because if you’re not in the bar, your crew can made the same recipe cocktail, the bar’s own creation.Keep the particular style of each bar, for example a Cuba Libre with slice of lemon or lime, or how many? drops of bitters in a Manhattan.
Mr. Jeff BeachBum Berry, rebuilt the lost knowledge of tiki cocktails, because I get to his hands, a notebook property of a retired tiki bartender.
Dear friend, always a pleasure reading your blog.
Best regards from the far south
Federico Cuco
15 Feb 2012 at 11:37 AM 3. Matt Robold (@rumdood)
You told me to invest in one about 3 years ago and mine is steadily taking on the same beat-up, well-used look as yours.
I can concoct a scheme for a bar with no shaker or no spoon, but I can’t handle not having my book with me (except for the fact that I’ve put all of the recipes into Evernote on my phone).
15 Feb 2012 at 12:16 PM 4. Doug Ford
Matt has hit on my first reaction, that it makes a certain amount of sense to keep your notes in [smartphone-of-choice], as opposed to a physical paper book.
So I’m wondering: I like the idea of a “real” book—I’m a book guy from way back. I love the feel, the smell, the tradition, but it seems it would be a bit unwieldy for this purpose as the sections fill up. Do you find that happening, or is that a non-issue?
15 Feb 2012 at 12:20 PM 5. J. Armitage
Could not agree more on this subject, my only concern is i need to invest in a more capacious a-z.
15 Feb 2012 at 12:21 PM 6. Jeffrey Morgenthaler
Doug and Matt
Digital copies of preferred recipes is certainly the way to go in terms of sharing and archiving. What doesn’t make a lot of sense is handling a cell phone with wet hands, while your guests look on, uncertain if you’re looking up the recipe for their drink or just sending a text message to your friends.
Additionally, I insist that my bartenders refrain from handling their phones – or anything that touches their mouth and face. Stick to the book and leave the cell phone underneath the bar.
15 Feb 2012 at 12:50 PM 7. Mindy Kucan (@drinkswmindy)
I have a Moleskin and an index card box I keep at work because I like to wear skirts (no pockets!). Matt, good call on Evernote!
15 Feb 2012 at 1:20 PM 8. jellydonut (@frakwit)
If Jeff Morgenthaler can’t remember the recipe for a Mai Tai without his notebook.. then we’re ALL allowed to look up recipes.
Thanks for gradually de-elitifying the elite drinks-making world. :p
15 Feb 2012 at 1:54 PM 9. Tony Harion
There is an ongoing thread about ways to keep track of recipes on the Chanticleer Society.
http://chanticleersociety.org/forums/p/1429/8264.aspx#8264
My take is whatever suits you best. I can definitely see your point on the comment above about using the phone, but also like a practical aspect of a digital copy.
I think for bar setups the notebook even ads an additional piece of history/flair to the drinks you are making.
15 Feb 2012 at 4:15 PM 10. Tiare
During those years i worked as chef in various restaurants i always carried my little black book with me, i still have it and now i also have several with drinks, and etc etc even though i just blog and don´t work in a bar. I like real books.
15 Feb 2012 at 4:27 PM 11. Adam Bryan
I have several Moleskins containing recipies both personal and historical, problem is I often can’t read my own handwriting so I’ve been using the iPhone for the last couple years. I try to be as inconspicuous as possible of course. At “Motel” (opening in May) we will be using an iPad based POS system so all of our recipies will be accessible, updateable and shareable! Yay!!
16 Feb 2012 at 8:40 AM 12. John
skip the phone, the book simply looks better. I’ve had to upgrade to something with more pages now though as keeping track of cocktails written in the margins has become fairly difficult.
16 Feb 2012 at 9:13 AM 13. J
Great post. Congrats on LifeHacker picking this one up.
http://lifehacker.com/5885665/use-an-address-book-to-collect-drink-recipes
Cheers!
16 Feb 2012 at 9:16 AM 14. Angus
I keep mine in an excel spreadsheet with ingredients in consecutive columns. Measures are automatically calculated according to number of serves.
I think you’ll find this blows the moleskin clean out of the water.
16 Feb 2012 at 9:29 AM 15. Jeffrey Morgenthaler
Neat idea, Angus, but reaching for a full-on computer in the middle of a busy dinner rush isn’t really an option for me. Or any bartender.
16 Feb 2012 at 5:18 PM 16. Phil
Great post I’ve been using a moleskine notebook for a while to jot down my favorite drinks but for some reason I never thought to use an address book to keep them in order. I guess that’s why you’re the boss. I’ll be purchasing my moleskine address book today. Thanks for the great tip and for another great post.
16 Feb 2012 at 10:38 PM 17. Warren
I keep a list of important recipes in a spreadsheet as well (does anyone else use Regan’s cocktail categories?), but I never thought of copying them into a moleskine. That would be easier than reaching for a book that might not have the recipe I want.
Ideally, I’d love an iPad with my recipe spreadsheet open, but I think if I pulled out my iPhone to look up a drink in front of one of my guests, I’d be strangled on the spot by my manager.
Nice to see you blogging again, Jeffrey, and still patiently waiting for a cognac-based recipe, sir.
17 Feb 2012 at 12:07 AM 18. Spyros Patsialos
I think that we all have our little notebooks behind the bar, but this article is so true and the idea of the specific address book looks amazing.
Thanks for sharing… :)
22 Feb 2012 at 11:21 AM 19. not_carlos
Thanks to lifehacker, I found one of my new favourite blogs! This is seriously a great idea and beats using my phone behind the bar, or worse, the bars own drink recipe book (literally sheets and sheets and sheets of print outs from different websites). I ordered my moleskine a couple days ago and am ready to fill it up with the growing list of cocktails on my phone, cheers!
05 Mar 2012 at 4:00 AM 20. Kadir
It’s a awesome tip for New Bartenders like me. I always scare about the forget recipies. But I think a Bartender who is workin’ in Touristic Places Like me, must Know International Cocktails. But a Bartender must have notebook like this. Thanks Sir. Keep bloggin.. We’re Following you.
11 Mar 2012 at 7:59 AM 21. rowley
Nothing beats an actual book for preserving information. My painful lesson on the value of a Moleskine: Years ago, I put all the contact information I had for two decades of moonshiners, home distillers, law enforcement, retired ATF agents, liquor historians, and the like on a Palm. They had been scattered among napkins, scraps of paper, matchbooks, the backs of receipts, beer coasters, etc. Once they were all in one place, I threw out the scraps. Then didn’t use the Palm for a month. Turns out that when the battery dies on one of those things, ALL the information on it simply disappears. Almost 20 years of data: gone. I was able to reconstruct some of it, but that was the day I learned to distrust digital storage and rely, always, on hard copies for the most important stuff. Moleskine works best and my current one looks every bit as worn and duct-taped as yours. Now, if I can just remember not to run it through the wash…
21 Mar 2012 at 10:46 AM 22. JD
Hey Jeff,
Not completely related to the topic but do you have any recommendations for good cocktail books on tiki drinks?
Thanks,
JD
22 Mar 2012 at 10:41 PM 23. Dan McKay
Hahahahahaha! thats amazing and so true, the Mai Tai is the drink that got me into mixing drinks when i was 18, and after reading this, i stopped myself to think of what the exact proportions were. Address book is a great idea.
27 Mar 2012 at 10:31 AM 24. Howard
Hi
I love moleskines! I use a small one for every day catcher of some mention. Now will try the addresss one for cocktails.
Do you list by name of the drink? Or by the type of spirit?
Howard
13 May 2012 at 9:52 AM 25. RJ Ulbricht
Yup!
I’m old school myself. Started using a DateTimer back in 1981 and still do vs. all my friends who have moved their lives to their cell phones, etc. Strange, I never have to plug my DateTimer in or need an upgrade.
22 Jun 2012 at 1:06 PM 26. Mark
Rather than a regular address book I may suggest a “Rite in the Rain” journal. That’s the brand name and I have nothing to do with the company – I just use them.
They’re used by surveyors, biologists, geologists and other folks who work out in the weather. I used them when I was doing environmental work. You can get them hard bound, sprial bound, pocket sized or larger. The main thing is that the pages are water proof – spilled drinks shouldn’t disintegrate them. The catch is that you need pencil or sharpie to write in them. Certain brands of ball point pens won’t stay on the paper. Some do, some don’t; you’d have to experiment.
31 Jul 2012 at 10:32 PM 27. janessa
I hope my husband doesnt see this, but just fell in love with you a little bit. HaHa. Thank you for admiting your human and caring about the integrity of the drink !
03 Aug 2012 at 9:30 PM 28. Jeffrey Morgenthaler
Thanks, janessa, but don’t make me blush.
26 Aug 2012 at 3:05 PM 29. DG
Same idea, but after “losing” half a dozen of my notebooks over the years, I tried to bring a bit of technology into it at my bar by putting up a shared Google Docs page that every new employee gets included on, and it’s been great. It’s nice because then it’s not just my original list of drink specs, but if one of the other guys gets worthwhile order when I’m not around, they can throw it up into the pool and everyone gets to work off the same shared list of recipes for consistency and science. At the end of every week I print out a new copy, fold and bind it, and replace the old one behind the bar (hate people looking shit up on their phones at work too). We try and cull every now and then it so it’s all killer and no filler, but it’s nice when a customer comes in and wants a drink that only one of the other bartenders made the other night, any of us can look it up and give them the same drink (and everyone gets to have fun trying to get new drinks onto the list).
That said, I still have my own private little handwritten bible in my bag that I’ve been carting around for years, but I do dig having a group one for collaborative effort behind the bar. Especially good for a small place like ours where we rarely work at the same time and have a chance to see what the other guys are doing (and it lets them throw in an update from their phones if they’re out on the town on their nights off and see something interesting).
27 Aug 2012 at 6:33 PM 30. Kenneth Davis
I write up all my recipes in an Excel spreadsheet. It is set up so that it will print out 3 1/2 by 5″ which I do on card stock, I then punch holes in one side and create a small book. In this way I can easily revise them and reprint, replace damaged pages, and never encounter the issue where I run out of pages for a given letter of the alphabet. And then use plastic for the cover pages and alphabetic tabs.
28 Aug 2012 at 12:46 AM 31. Ginty
I generally rely on “hard copies” for all my information, so I may invest in a book for myself. But anyone suggest an iPhone spreadsheet that I can get? I’ve been using the “notes” app, but i like the sound of a more organized system.
28 Aug 2012 at 10:41 AM 32. Adam Bryan
For the iOS users try EVERNOTE. Infact all of Petraske’s ventures use it as a shared database for hundreds of recipies.
02 Sep 2012 at 11:33 PM 33. Nikki
So I just started training to bar tend at Le Bistro Montage/La Merde after working in the dining room forever, and your blog has really been helping me. So thank you and please keep posting awesome advice for a new bar tender :)