Cocktail for This Week: The Patiala Peg Cocktail – Recipe
Legend claims that during 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was determined that his cricket team would win over a touring English team. For a competitive edge, he organized a grand party on the eve of the match, at which he served his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These are famously substantial four-finger measure whisky servings, historically poured from little finger to index finger. As expected, the English players overindulged, resulting in them being extremely hungover and, consequently, beaten the day after. In this way, the legend of the Patiala peg originated.
This take on a variation of Old Fashioned cocktail draws inspiration from Singh's concoction. In our establishment, we serve it from a bespoke large-format bottle, but we've modified the recipe to make it more suitable for a household setting.
Patiala Peg
Makes 1 litre, enough for 10-12 drinks.
You Will Need
- 725g blended scotch whisky
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A small pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Instructions
Combine all the ingredients in a sizeable jug. Pour in 130g water, mix thoroughly, then transfer it in the refrigerator. It can be stored for as long as 21 days.
For serving, pour roughly 90ml of the prepared cocktail into a rocks glass containing ice (preferably one large cube). Drink straight away. To honour tradition, you could measure it in by hand for authenticity.
