June 4th,
2009
Since I’m on the subject of Old Fashioneds, I went looking for videos to help with my learning experience.
Of course, cocktail bloggers and blog readers will have a good idea of one of the first sages to which I turned.
Behold his wisdom:
With a nod to the genius of Jeffrey Morganthaler, let me take a crack at what there is to be learned from this opus.
- The Old Fashioned is
kind of an old drink
. He is a subtle master of the art of understatement. - He let’s the moment flow. For instance, when starting to make a video for the internet, he doesn’t even need to know whether the tools he’ll be using (i.e. a bar spoon) are available. He’s a zen master, I tell you.
Bitters is an alcoholic, uh, substance.
No actual bitters need exit the bottle and enter the glass.- If you use plain granulated sugar, instead of one of those sugar cube thingies, it will easily dissolve. So just pile on the ice and proceed.
- One ounce of liquor makes a sufficient drink.
- Add carbonated water to fill the glass.
- Aw, what the heck give it a stir. Two or three swirls should do it. Ignore the white sludge you have left in the bottom of the glass.
- Make sure to handle the cherry you garnish the drink with. Your guests and patrons will appreciate the
personal touch.
Really, he is a genius.
That said, if you are looking for a more, um, nuanced presentation, you might prefer the following video, from Robert Hess. He’s also done a bunch of web videos, but he bogs them down with interesting stories, elegant preparation, and recipes that are laden with quality.
I mean, if you are into that sort of thing.
Whatever floats your boat.





