Cocktail This Week: The Patiala Peg – How to Make It
Legend suggests that during 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was adamant that his cricket team would succeed over a visiting English team. To secure an advantage, he hosted a splendid party the night before the match, where he served his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These are incredibly generous four-finger measure whisky servings, historically poured from little finger to forefinger. Predictably, the English players overindulged, resulting in them being very the worse for wear and, consequently, vanquished the following day. And so, the legend of the Patiala peg came to be.
This inspired variation of Old Fashioned cocktail is inspired by the Maharaja's drink. At the restaurant, we present it from a specially crafted five-litre bottle, but we've adjusted the recipe to make it more suitable for a domestic environment.
The Patiala Peg Recipe
Produces 1 litre, serving 10-12 portions.
What's Required
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g simple syrup
- 6g Angostura bitters (about 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A small pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Method
Place all the ingredients in a sizeable jug. Pour in 130g water, stir thoroughly, then put it in the refrigerator. You can store it for about a few weeks.
To serve, measure out about 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a short glass filled with ice (ideally one big block). Enjoy immediately. For a traditional touch, you could measure it in by hand for authenticity.
