Cocktail This Week: Ambassadors Clubhouse's Patiala Peg – How to Make It
Tale has it that back in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his team would win over a visiting English team. To gain the upper hand, he hosted a grand party on the eve of the match, where he presented his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These were famously generous four-finger whisky pours, traditionally measured from little finger to forefinger. As expected, the English players partook excessively, leaving them terribly the worse for wear and, consequently, defeated the next day. In this way, the legend of the Patiala peg came to be.
This inspired variation of old fashioned draws inspiration from the Maharaja's beverage. At the restaurant, we offer it from a custom-made large-format bottle, but we've modified the recipe to make it better suited for a domestic environment.
Patiala Peg
Makes 1 litre, enough for 10-12 drinks.
Ingredients
- 725g Scotch whisky blend
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (about 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (approximately ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Preparation
Put everything in a big container. Include 130g water, stir thoroughly, then place it in the refrigerator. You can store it for up to three weeks.
For serving, pour roughly 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a old fashioned glass filled with ice (ideally one large cube). Serve immediately. For a traditional touch, you could pour it using your fingers for authenticity.
