Drink for This Week: The Patiala Peg – How to Make It
Legend claims that in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was set that his cricket team would win over a touring English team. To gain the upper hand, he hosted a splendid party the night before the match, where he offered his guests the legendary Patiala pegs. These were incredibly substantial four-finger measure whisky servings, customarily poured from pinky to forefinger. Unsurprisingly, the English players overindulged, leaving them extremely the worse for wear and, consequently, defeated the day after. In this way, the myth of the Patiala peg was born.
This inspired kind-of Old Fashioned cocktail is inspired by that original drink. Here, we serve it from a specially crafted large-format bottle, but we've adapted the instructions to make it better suited for a domestic setting.
Patiala Peg
Makes 1 litre, enough for 10-12 portions.
What's Required
- 725g Scotch whisky blend
- 130g sugar syrup
- 6g Angostura bitters (about 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Method
Combine everything in a sizeable jug. Add 130g water, mix to combine, then put it in the fridge. It can be stored for up to a few weeks.
To serve, measure out roughly 90ml of the prepared cocktail into a old fashioned glass containing ice (traditionally one big block). Serve promptly. For a traditional touch, you could use the four-finger measure as they did.
