Old Fashioned Recipe

When an outsider thinks of WI, they might think of a flyover state, but for us locals, it’s more than that. Wisconsin to me is a brandy old fashioned. I’ve been told by some in my inner circle that I should wait to share my recipe… they want me to build suspense, get a following first, and then drop the secret recipe. But I don’t feel like that’s ethical. One of my pillars of Wisconsin, as evidenced by my logo, is a nice WI old fashioned. So I do feel like it’s necessary to share here, and if you like, great!! I love it too! If not, well this is a free country after all, you’re not correct but you’re certainly free to have your own opinion or make it your own way, legally speaking. Now I’m sure some random guy from southern Wisconsin named “Chris” is probably going to jump in the comments and disagree with either the method and/or ingredients, but he’s also wrong. So without further ado, here is the PROPER and CORRECT way to make a Wisconsin brandy old fashioned sweet. You drink your old fashioned with whiskey? And sour? Ok, not as good, you’re missing out. Whiskey sweet? Well come on now, that’s just weird. Brandy sour? A little less weird, but not as correct as brandy sweets. Anyways…

Ingredients:
-1 sugar cube (if making it sweet. If going sour, skip this)
-Sprite – for sweet, Sour Pow’r (Jolly Good) – for sour
-Brandy – more on this below
-Bitters – preferably: Aromatic, orange, and cherry
-Cherries
-Orange Slices
-Ice

Method:
Step 1 – take your glass, and here’s a GREAT tip… don’t use just a regular lowball glass, aka an old fashioned glass. Those are usually only 10 oz. I highly recommend a double old fashioned glass, or closer to 12 oz. They can fit more of this lovely drink. It’s not a dealbreaker by any means, just a helpful tip I’ve learned over the years to get more out of your drink. Take your glass, add your sugar cube, and add just enough of your pop to barely cover the cube. Be patient here… let this cube dissolve naturally. It’ll take 2-3 minutes to become a powder on the bottom of the glass, but at this point you can take your bar-spoon and mix it to dissolve it completely.
Step 2 – once the sugar is 90-100% dissolved, add your bitters. My mix: 3 dashes Angostura aromatic, 5 dashes orange bitters, and 7 dashes cherry bitters. Mix again with your bar spoon.
Step 3 – add one or two cherries, and 3/4 an orange slice. If using cherries from a jar, a spoonful or two of the cherry juice should be added. Muddle cherry and orange. Make sure to muddle the rind of the orange as well, that releases extra aromatics and flavors you definitely want. Remove cherry pit if applicable.
Step 4 – add ice to the top of the glass.
Step 5 – add your brandy now. I tend to add brandy up until it’s ALMOST to the top, but not quite.
Step 6 – add a splash of the sprite (or Sour Pow’r) to the top, grab your bar spoon and mix well. Garnish with the 1/4 of orange slice you didn’t use, and another cherry. Olives for a sour if that’s your thing.
Step 7 – Enjoy Wisconsin in a glass

I’d like to take some time to add some ways to make this drink even MORE Wisconsin. The entire point of this blog is to get people to explore and support the state more, so let’s discuss some ways to make that happen. First, your choice of pop. For those making a sour, Jolly Good Sour Pow’r is a must. I really wish they made a Sprite equivalent, but they don’t. For your alcohol, I prefer to use WI brandy… my personal favorite: Driftless Glen (out of Baraboo), but I’m very partial to Wollersheim and Dancing Goat as well. Now, I also am not dumb and understand this state’s obsession with Korbel, and I will use that as well from time to time, but again, I’m trying to keep it local here, so find the distillery closest to you, grab a bottle of their brandy, and make it with theirs. This applies to those of you whiskey drinkers as well. Local bourbons are better than you might think. Kentucky is becoming overrated in regards to the quality of their bourbons, so grab a J. Henry, Driftless Glen, or any other Wisconsin whiskey that tickles your fancy. When it comes to the bitters, I recommend using Bittercube brand bitters for the orange and cherry… they are based out of Milwaukee. They do make an aromatic bitters as well, which would equivocate Angostura, but I have yet to find that kind of theirs in stores yet. When I do find that, I’ll be swapping out the Angostura for Bittercube. And lastly, Wisconsin, and Door County in particular, is known for cherries, so lets use some cherries from our great state. Bonus points for those of you that pick your own in-season, and then freeze what you don’t use to enjoy throughout the rest of the year, but at the very least, do your best to support the cherry economy. It also makes for a good excuse to visit the peninsula in late summer.

Let me know in the comments if you like this recipe! How do you make yours? You’re wrong still, but I’m curious!!