On the Rocks: The Old-Fashioned

The Old-Fashioned is a classic cocktail that never goes out of style. It is the perfect holiday sipping drink, for myriad reasons. A single liquor is less likely to leave you feeling unwell at your desk the next morning, bitters will aid digestion if you have overindulged in sweets and meats, the seltzer keeps you hydrated, always a smart move in stuffy, too-warm gatherings. Bulleit rye is good enough to drink straight, so we also tried mixing Canadian Club whiskey, which tickled me because it is such a throwback without irony. Or did I just add a dash of irony without meaning to? CC & 7 is a drink for dads, dads with mustaches and denim shorts and corduroy blazers and soft packs of Winstons. I liked its plain, straight-to-the-point bottle. Brazenly cheap and commercial. Sedate and bare bones with just a kiss of Kenny “The Beard” Loggins. Also, not delicious. Not straight anyway. But, with a little help from sugar and bitters, Canadian Club becomes palatable. I wouldn’t recommend drinking many. But if you’re mixing up a batch for a big party, go for it.

The Old-Fashioned

Ingredients:

• Sugar cube
• Angostura bitters
• Seltzer water
• Rye whiskey
• Orange slices

Method:

Place a sugar cube in a highball glass. Saturate with 3 ashes of bitters. Pour in desired amount of rye, add a splash of seltzer and garnish with orange slices. Fill the glass up with crushed ice.

Tagged as: on the rocks

About the Author: Jillian Bedell

Jillian grew up in Connecticut, went to university in Boston, college in New Haven, did some post-grad soul searching in New York, exiled herself to Mexico, married her longtime sweetheart, and lived in a house on the ocean. She suspected Maine might be the perfect place to raise a family, so she came back home to New England two years ago. Now a mom to Violet Maeve and living in Rockland, where she hopes to settle for a good, long while, Jillian reads, writes, walks, and practices Nia, when not watching Malcolm photograph sandwiches.