Cocktail for This Week: The Patiala Peg – How to Make It
Folklore suggests that during 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was determined that his team would triumph over a visiting English team. For a competitive edge, he hosted a lavish party on the eve of the match, where he offered his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These are famously large four-finger measure whisky servings, historically measured from little finger to index finger. Unsurprisingly, the English players drank too much, resulting in them being terribly the worse for wear and, consequently, beaten the following day. In this way, the legend of the Patiala peg originated.
This take on a variation of Old Fashioned cocktail draws inspiration from the Maharaja's concoction. At the restaurant, we offer it from a custom-made large-format bottle, but we've modified the instructions to make it more suitable for a domestic kitchen.
Patiala Peg
Yields 1 litre, to serve 10-12 people.
Ingredients
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g simple syrup
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (approximately ⅕ tsp)
- A dash of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Method
Place everything in a big container. Include 130g water, agitate to combine, then put it in the fridge. It can be stored for up to three weeks.
For serving, measure out about 90ml of the infused whisky into a rocks glass filled with ice (ideally one big block). Drink straight away. If you're feeling traditional, you could measure it in by hand as they did.
