Old Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail

Old Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail

2 oz rye whiskey (Old Overholt)

1 oz simple syrup

2 dashes Angostura bitters

Pour simple syrup into rocks/old fashiuoned glass, add couple dashes of Angostura bitters. Fill glass half full with ice, stir to mix. Peel a strip of orange peel using a potato peeler, squeeze over glass to release orange oils into glass. Place orange swath into glass. Fill remaining space with ice. Pour whiskey and stir to mix.

The quintessential cocktail? Perhaps. As defined by Jerry Thomas back in 1862 a cocktail is simply a mixture of spirits, sugar, water, and bitters, which is exactly what the Old Fashioned Whiskey Cocktail is.

The recipe and method above comes off Robert Hess' website and it works quite well. The first sip I don't think I noticed much more than the whiskey, but after a couple more sips the drink gained a whole new complexity thanks to the Angostura bitters and orange oils. This is really a delicious drink and it could not be more simple.