To make an old fashioned, stir 2 oz of bourbon or rye whiskey with a sugar cube or 1/4 oz of rich demerara syrup, 2 to 3 dashes of Angostura bitters and a splash of water over ice, then twist an orange peel over the top. That’s just a handful of ingredients and two minutes of your time.
The first old fashioned I made at home was a mess. I poured whiskey straight over a sugar cube, gave it two lazy stirs, and the last sip was gritty, sweet sludge. It taught me the rule that matters most: dissolve the sugar before the whiskey goes in.
Here’s the recipe I use now, and why each step matters.
TL;DR
- Make an old fashioned by stirring 2 oz of bourbon or rye with a sugar cube or 1/4 oz of rich demerara syrup, 2 to 3 dashes of Angostura bitters and a splash of water over ice, then expressing an orange peel over the top.
- Bourbon, made from at least 51% corn, gives a rounder and sweeter drink, while rye, made from at least 51% rye, gives a drier and spicier one; a bottle around 90 to 100 proof holds up best to melting ice.
- Dissolve the sugar completely before the whiskey goes in, use one large ice cube, and stir for about 30 seconds instead of shaking.
- Muddled fruit, shaking, too much sugar, small wet ice and a soda topper are the mistakes that ruin a classic old fashioned.
- Swap one part of the formula to get the Wisconsin brandy, maple, rum, Oaxacan and smoked variations, all built on the 1806 definition of a cocktail: spirits, sugar, water and bitters.
Old Fashioned Ingredients
An old fashioned has three core ingredients: whiskey, sugar and bitters. Water and ice bring them together, and an orange peel finishes the drink.
The International Bartenders Association’s official Old Fashioned recipe lists 45 ml (about 1.5 oz) of bourbon or rye, one sugar cube, a few dashes of Angostura bitters and a few dashes of plain water. Most American recipes pour 2 oz, and that’s the measure I use:
- Whiskey: 2 oz of bourbon or rye.
- Sugar: one sugar cube, 1 teaspoon of granulated sugar, or 1/4 oz of rich demerara syrup.
- Bitters: 2 to 3 dashes of Angostura aromatic bitters.
- Water: a bar spoon or two, only if you use a cube or loose sugar.
- Ice: one large cube about 2 inches across, or a few standard cubes.
- Garnish: a wide strip of orange peel, plus a cocktail cherry if you like one.
Bourbon or Rye: Which Whiskey Is Best?
Both are correct, and the choice changes the drink more than anything else. Under federal rules, bourbon must come from a mash of at least 51% corn and rye whiskey from at least 51% rye, and both are aged in charred new oak barrels.
That corn makes bourbon rounder and sweeter, with vanilla and caramel notes, while rye tastes drier and spicier. I pour bourbon for friends who are new to the drink and rye when I want more bite.
Whichever you choose, use a bottle you’d happily sip neat. Whiskey can legally be bottled as low as 80 proof, but I like 90 to 100 proof here: melting ice softens the drink, and a gentler bottle can taste thin by the last sip.
Sugar Cube or Simple Syrup?
The sugar cube is the traditional route: soak it with bitters, add a little water and crush it until no grains remain. It’s a nice ritual, but undissolved sugar is the most common flaw in a home old fashioned.
Syrup skips that problem. I keep a jar of rich demerara syrup in the fridge: 1 cup of demerara sugar and 1/2 cup of water, warmed and stirred until clear, never boiled. Its light molasses note suits aged whiskey, and a quarter ounce is enough. With standard 1:1 simple syrup, use about 1/2 oz.
The Bitters: Angostura and Beyond
Bitters are the seasoning. Two or three dashes of Angostura give the drink its warm, spiced backbone. Leave them out and you have sweetened whiskey, not an old fashioned.
A dash of orange bitters on top of the Angostura is a common addition, and I like it with rye. For a zero-proof old fashioned, non-alcoholic bitters do the same seasoning job without the booze.
How to Make an Old Fashioned, Step by Step
This is the build-in-the-glass method, the way the drink was made when it got its name. You need a rocks glass, a bar spoon and a jigger.
- Dissolve the sugar. Put the sugar cube in the glass, soak it with the bitters, add a bar spoon of water and crush it until it disappears. With syrup, just add the syrup and bitters.
- Pour the whiskey. Add 2 oz of bourbon or rye and give it a quick stir so the sweetened bitters mix in.
- Add the ice. Drop in one large cube, or fill the glass with standard cubes.
- Stir. I stir gently for about 30 seconds. You want the drink cold and slightly diluted, not watery.
- Taste it. I always taste before the garnish. Too hot? Stir a little longer. Too sharp? Add a few drops of syrup.
- Express the orange peel. Hold the peel skin side down over the glass and pinch it so its oils mist across the surface, which is called expressing it. Rub it around the rim, drop it in and add a cherry if you like.
For a cleaner, colder drink, stir the syrup, bitters and whiskey with plenty of ice in a mixing glass for about 30 seconds, then strain over a fresh large cube. The earliest printed recipe, from 1888, already offered both versions.
Making a round for friends? Mix the whiskey, syrup and bitters for every guest in a bottle and keep it in the fridge, then pour single servings over large cubes and give each a short stir. It’s my go-to move for hosting a legendary guys night, because nobody waits while I muddle.
Mistakes That Ruin an Old Fashioned
The drink has so few ingredients that every shortcut shows. These are the ones I see most often.
- Muddling the fruit into mush. Pounding an orange slice and a cherry into the sugar clouds the drink and buries the whiskey. The IBA recipe keeps both as a garnish.
- Shaking it. An all-spirit drink gets stirred. Shaking beats in air and ice chips, so the drink turns cloudy and loses its silky texture.
- Too much sugar. It should taste of whiskey first. If you can’t pick out the bourbon’s caramel or the rye’s spice, halve the sweetener next time.
- Small, wet ice. Half-melted cubes water the drink down fast. One large cube, clear if you can make it, melts far more slowly because it has less surface for its size.
- Topping it with soda. Club soda or lemon-lime soda belongs in the Wisconsin version below. In a classic old fashioned it only thins out the whiskey.
Old Fashioned Variations Worth Trying
Once you have the classic down, treat it as a formula: an aged spirit, a sweetener and bitters. Swap one part and you get a new drink.
- Wisconsin brandy old fashioned. Brandy replaces the whiskey, the fruit gets muddled with the sugar and bitters, and the glass is topped with lemon-lime soda, sour mix or club soda. In 2023 the Wisconsin State Assembly approved a resolution naming it the state cocktail.
- Maple old fashioned. Replace the sugar with about 1/4 oz of dark maple syrup and use bourbon. It’s my default once the leaves turn.
- Rum old fashioned. An aged amber or dark rum with demerara syrup and Angostura makes a softer, rounder version.
- Oaxacan old fashioned. Reposado tequila and a little mezcal, sweetened with agave nectar. The mezcal brings a gentle smoke.
- Smoked old fashioned. Fill the glass with wood smoke from a torch or a cocktail smoker before you pour. I save it for company.
Where the Old Fashioned Came From
The old fashioned is close to the original cocktail. In May 1806 a New York newspaper, The Balance and Columbian Repository, defined a cock-tail as a stimulating liquor “composed of spirits of any kind, sugar, water, and bitters.” Swap ice for some of that water and you have the drink in your glass.
By the 1870s, bartenders were dressing up their whiskey cocktails with absinthe, curaçao and other liqueurs. Drinkers who wanted the plain version ordered it the old-fashioned way, and the name stuck, along with the heavy tumbler it was built in, which became the old fashioned glass.
Louisville’s Pendennis Club often gets credit for the drink, but the Chicago Daily Tribune was writing about old fashioned cocktails in 1880, a year before the club was founded. Louisville still claims it: the old fashioned is the city’s official cocktail, celebrated every June during Old Fashioned Fortnight.
FAQ
What is the proper way to make an Old Fashioned?
Dissolve the sugar first, then add the whiskey and ice. Soak a sugar cube with 2 to 3 dashes of Angostura bitters and a splash of water, crush it until it disappears, add 2 oz of bourbon or rye and one large ice cube, stir for about 30 seconds and express an orange peel over the top.
What are the three ingredients in an Old Fashioned?
Whiskey, sugar and bitters. The classic uses bourbon or rye, a sugar cube or rich syrup, and Angostura bitters, brought together with a little water and ice. An orange peel is the standard garnish, and a cocktail cherry is optional.
What liquor is best for an Old Fashioned?
Bourbon or rye whiskey. Bourbon makes a rounder, sweeter drink with vanilla and caramel notes, and rye makes a drier, spicier one. Choose a bottle you would enjoy neat, ideally 90 to 100 proof. Brandy is the usual swap in Wisconsin, and aged rum or reposado tequila work for variations.
What bitters go in an Old Fashioned?
Angostura aromatic bitters. Two or three dashes give the drink its warm, spiced backbone, and without them you just have sweetened whiskey. A dash of orange bitters on top of the Angostura is a common addition that pairs especially well with rye.
Should an Old Fashioned be shaken or stirred?
Stirred. An old fashioned is an all-spirit drink, and shaking beats in air and ice chips that leave it cloudy and thin. Stir it gently with ice for about 30 seconds, in the glass or in a mixing glass, until it is cold and slightly diluted.
Sources
- Old Fashioned, International Bartenders Association
- 27 CFR 5.143: Whisky, Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR)
- Old Fashioned Cocktail History: Origins to Today, Difford’s Guide
- Wisconsin snubs bourbon by elevating a favored local drink to state cocktail status, NBC Chicago (The Associated Press)
