Drink for This Week: Ambassadors Clubhouse's Patiala Peg Cocktail – How to Make It
Folklore claims that in 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was adamant that his team would win over a touring English squad. To gain the upper hand, he threw a splendid party on the eve of the match, at which he served his guests the legendary Patiala pegs. These were famously large four-finger measure whisky pours, traditionally poured from pinky to forefinger. Predictably, the English players partook excessively, resulting in them being terribly the worse for wear and, inevitably, vanquished the day after. And so, the myth of the Patiala peg originated.
This Punjabi variation of Old Fashioned cocktail draws inspiration from Singh's concoction. At the restaurant, we present it from a specially crafted five-litre bottle, but we've adapted the recipe to make it better suited for a household environment.
Patiala Peg
Makes 1 litre, to serve 10-12 drinks.
Ingredients
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g simple syrup
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (about 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A dash of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Instructions
Place everything in a sizeable jug. Include 130g water, mix thoroughly, then put it in the refrigerator. You can store it for as long as a few weeks.
When ready to drink, dispense roughly 90ml of the infused whisky into a rocks glass packed with ice (ideally one large cube). Enjoy immediately. If you're feeling traditional, you could measure it in by hand for authenticity.
