Cocktail for This Week: The Patiala Peg Cocktail – How to Make It
Folklore claims that in 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was set that his cricket team would succeed over a visiting English squad. To secure an advantage, he hosted a lavish party on the eve of the match, at which he presented his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These are famously large four-finger whisky pours, historically measured 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 take on a kind-of old fashioned is inspired by Singh's drink. At the restaurant, we present it from a custom-made five-litre bottle, but we've adjusted the formula to make it better suited for a home kitchen.
Patiala Peg
Produces 1 litre, to serve 10-12 drinks.
You Will Need
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (about 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (approximately ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Method
Put all the ingredients in a big container. Include 130g water, agitate to combine, then put it in the refrigerator. It will now keep for up to three weeks.
When ready to drink, measure out approximately 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a rocks glass filled with ice (ideally one large cube). Drink straight away. For a traditional touch, you could measure it in by hand instead.
