Most bars make an Old Fashioned with bourbon or rye. We make ours with Beeble Honey Whisky, which gives a slightly sweeter drink. If you've always found the classic a bit sharp, this is a gentler way into it. The honey also does the job the sugar cube usually does, so there's one less thing to dissolve at the bottom of the glass.
What goes in ours
- 50ml Beeble Honey Whisky
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- A splash of water
- Ice
- A strip of orange peel
How we make it
Everything is built in the glass, so there's no shaker to wash afterwards. We put the water and bitters in first and give them a stir until they've mostly mixed. Then the ice goes in and the whisky follows a bit at a time with the spoon still moving. It takes about a minute. You'll feel the glass go cold in your hand around the time it's ready.
- 50ml Beeble Honey Whisky
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- Splash of water
- Ice
- Orange twill
Method:
- Add water and bitters to a rocks glass and stir until nearly dissolved
- Fill the glass with ice cubes
- Gradually add the Honey Whisky whilst stirring
- Garnish with an orange twill
The bit people rush
Most people stop stirring too early. The whisky needs a little melted ice to soften it, and if you cut that short the first few sips taste hot. Leave it too long and it goes thin before you've finished. We taste from the spoon and stop when there's no burn at the back of the throat.
Big ice helps here. Small cubes melt fast and the drink gets watery halfway down. If you have a mould for big cubes, this is the drink to use it for.
The orange
A vegetable peeler works well for cutting a wide strip with very little of the bitter white pith. Give it a squeeze over the glass and you'll see a fine spray of oil land on top. We like to run the peel around the rim of the glass before dropping it in so you catch the orange every time you lift it.
Our tweaks
Our recipe uses two dashes of bitters, but plenty of people like a third with a sweeter whisky because it dries the finish a little. If it feels too strong, another splash of water calms it down. We'd change one thing per glass so you can tell which one you liked.
When we drink it
This is a slow drink for the end of the day. We'd have it after dinner with a square or two of dark chocolate, or with a cheeseboard when friends come round.
There's more on using the same bottle in our guide on how to drink honey whisky. For something brighter, the Whisky Bees Knees pairs it with fresh lemon.
