Cocktail for This Week: The Patiala Peg Cocktail – How to Make It
Tale claims that back in 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was adamant that his cricket team would succeed over a visiting English side. For a competitive edge, he organized a splendid party the night before the match, where he served his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These were notoriously substantial four-finger measure whisky servings, customarily poured from little finger to forefinger. Unsurprisingly, the English players drank too much, resulting in them being terribly the worse for wear and, consequently, defeated the following day. In this way, the myth of the Patiala peg was born.
This inspired spin on the Old Fashioned cocktail is inspired by that original concoction. At the restaurant, we serve it from a custom-made large-format bottle, but we've modified the instructions to make it better suited for a household environment.
The Patiala Peg Recipe
Produces 1 litre, to serve 10-12 people.
Ingredients
- 725g blended scotch whisky
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (approximately ⅕ tsp)
- A dash of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Instructions
Put all the ingredients in a large bottle. Include 130g water, mix to combine, then transfer it in the fridge. It can be stored for about a few weeks.
When ready to drink, measure out roughly 90ml of the infused whisky into a old fashioned glass filled with ice (traditionally one large cube). Drink immediately. For a traditional touch, you could measure it in by hand instead.
