Cocktail This Week: The Patiala Peg – Recipe
Legend suggests that back in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his cricket team would win over a touring English team. For a competitive edge, he organized a lavish party the night before the match, where he offered his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These are notoriously substantial four-finger measure whisky servings, traditionally measured from pinky to forefinger. Unsurprisingly, the English players partook excessively, resulting in them being terribly the worse for wear and, consequently, vanquished the day after. Thus, the myth of the Patiala peg originated.
This inspired spin on the old fashioned is inspired by the Maharaja's beverage. Here, we present it from a bespoke large-format bottle, but we've modified the instructions to make it more suitable for a domestic environment.
The Patiala Peg Recipe
Makes 1 litre, to serve 10-12 drinks.
Ingredients
- 725g Scotch whisky blend
- 130g sugar syrup
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1â…“ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about â…• tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Preparation
Put all the ingredients in a sizeable jug. Pour in 130g water, agitate to combine, then put it in the refrigerator. It will now keep for as long as three weeks.
For serving, measure out about 90ml of the infused whisky into a old fashioned glass packed with ice (traditionally one big block). Enjoy straight away. If you're feeling traditional, you could pour it using your fingers instead.
