Cocktail for This Week: The Patiala Peg Cocktail – Recipe
Tale claims that in 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was set that his team would succeed over a touring English side. To secure an advantage, he threw a grand party the night before the match, where he served his guests the legendary Patiala pegs. These are notoriously large four-finger whisky servings, historically poured from little finger to forefinger. Predictably, the English players overindulged, leaving them very the worse for wear and, consequently, beaten the next day. And so, the story of the Patiala peg was born.
This take on a kind-of old fashioned takes its cue from that original beverage. In our establishment, we present it from a bespoke five-litre bottle, but we've modified the formula to make it easier for a home kitchen.
The Patiala Peg Recipe
Produces 1 litre, enough for 10-12 drinks.
Ingredients
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g sugar syrup
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (approximately ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Method
Put everything in a large bottle. Pour in 130g water, stir until fully incorporated, then place it in the refrigerator. It can be stored for up to a few weeks.
When ready to drink, measure out approximately 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a short glass filled with ice (traditionally one big block). Serve immediately. If you're feeling traditional, you could pour it using your fingers instead.
