Drink This Week: Ambassadors Clubhouse's Patiala Peg Cocktail – Recipe
Folklore has it that back in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was determined that his cricket team would win over a touring English team. To gain the upper hand, he organized a lavish party on the eve of the match, where he presented his guests the legendary Patiala pegs. These were incredibly substantial four-finger whisky pours, traditionally measured from little finger to forefinger. As expected, the English players drank too much, resulting in them being terribly hungover and, inevitably, vanquished the day after. In this way, the legend of the Patiala peg was born.
This inspired kind-of old fashioned is inspired by the Maharaja's beverage. At the restaurant, we serve it from a custom-made large-format bottle, but we've adapted the instructions to make it more suitable for a home environment.
Patiala Peg
Makes 1 litre, to serve 10-12 drinks.
Ingredients
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g simple syrup
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A dash of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Instructions
Place all the ingredients in a big container. Pour in 130g water, agitate thoroughly, then transfer it in the fridge. You can store it for as long as 21 days.
For serving, measure out roughly 90ml of the infused whisky into a old fashioned glass containing ice (ideally one large cube). Enjoy promptly. For a traditional touch, you could pour it using your fingers for authenticity.
