Cocktail for This Week: The Patiala Peg Cocktail – How to Make It
Legend suggests that in 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was determined that his team would succeed over a visiting English squad. For a competitive edge, he threw a grand party on the eve of the match, at which he presented his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These were notoriously large four-finger measure whisky servings, customarily gauged from little finger to index finger. As expected, the English players partook excessively, resulting in them being terribly the worse for wear and, inevitably, defeated the day after. Thus, the legend of the Patiala peg was born.
This inspired kind-of Old Fashioned cocktail takes its cue from Singh's drink. At the restaurant, we offer it from a specially crafted five-litre bottle, but we've adapted the recipe to make it more suitable for a domestic kitchen.
The Patiala Peg Recipe
Yields 1 litre, to serve 10-12 people.
What's Required
- 725g blended scotch whisky
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Method
Combine all the ingredients in a sizeable jug. Pour in 130g water, agitate to combine, then put it in the refrigerator. It will now keep for as long as 21 days.
When ready to drink, measure out approximately 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a rocks glass filled with ice (preferably one large cube). Serve immediately. For a traditional touch, you could measure it in by hand as they did.
