Cocktail This Week: Ambassadors Clubhouse's Patiala Peg – How to Make It
Folklore claims that back in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his cricket team would triumph over a visiting English side. To gain the upper hand, he organized a splendid party on the eve of the match, where he served his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These are famously substantial four-finger measure whisky servings, historically gauged from little finger to forefinger. As expected, the English players drank too much, resulting in them being extremely the worse for wear and, consequently, beaten the following day. In this way, the story of the Patiala peg originated.
This Punjabi kind-of Old Fashioned cocktail takes its cue from that original beverage. In our establishment, we offer it from a specially crafted large-format bottle, but we've adapted the formula to make it better suited for a home kitchen.
Patiala Peg
Makes 1 litre, serving 10-12 drinks.
What's Required
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g simple syrup
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum powder
Instructions
Put everything in a big container. Pour in 130g water, mix until fully incorporated, then transfer it in the fridge. It can be stored for up to a few weeks.
When ready to drink, measure out about 90ml of the prepared cocktail into a short glass packed with ice (traditionally one large cube). Enjoy immediately. To honour tradition, you could use the four-finger measure as they did.
