By Matt Boyle & Jeff Van Horne, The Clever Barkeep
- Stick with an aged spirit to build on the flavours created from the charred oak barrel. Try making an Old Fashioned with aged rum, tequila or Cognac.
- Old Fashioned cocktails should be diluted with about 15-20 per cent of its total volume with water. You get this by stirring your cocktail with ice.
- Remember, fresh ice is best! Store your ice in freezer-lock bags so that they keep any odours from your freezer out of the ice.
- Using simple syrup as opposed to a sugar cube will give you a more consistent cocktail.
- Experiment with other types of sugar, like Demerara or golden to add depth of flavour.
- Liqueurs can also be used to replace simple syrup, such as Chartreuse, Disaronno, St. Germain Elderflower, Cointreau, Drambuie or Tia Maria.
- Use a proper dash of bitters. Tip the bottle completely upside down and vigorously dash with downward force. Remember, a dash is not a drop!
- Your orange zest garnish should contain as little of the white pith as possible. Peel the zest off the orange using a vegetable peeler and hold with the skin-side facing the glass. Express the oils from the zest over the glass by pinching the zest between your thumb and index finger. These oils will provide a sweet and citrusy aroma in your cocktail.