Cocktail of the Week: The Patiala Peg – Recipe
Tale has it that back in 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was determined that his team would triumph over a touring English side. To gain the upper hand, he threw a grand party on the eve of the match, at which he offered his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These are notoriously large four-finger whisky servings, customarily gauged from little finger to forefinger. As expected, the English players partook excessively, resulting in them being terribly hungover and, inevitably, vanquished the next day. And so, the myth of the Patiala peg was born.
This Punjabi kind-of old fashioned draws inspiration from the Maharaja's drink. Here, we serve it from a custom-made large-format bottle, but we've adjusted the recipe to make it better suited for a domestic setting.
The Patiala Peg Recipe
Yields 1 litre, serving 10-12 portions.
What's Required
- 725g blended scotch whisky
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A dash of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Method
Place all the ingredients in a large bottle. Include 130g water, stir to combine, then transfer it in the fridge. You can store it for about three weeks.
For serving, dispense approximately 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a rocks glass packed with ice (preferably one large cube). Serve immediately. If you're feeling traditional, you could use the four-finger measure instead.
