Cocktail of the Week: The Patiala Peg – Recipe

Tale suggests that during 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his team would triumph over a touring English team. To gain the upper hand, he hosted a lavish party on the eve of the match, where he presented his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These are famously generous four-finger measure whisky servings, customarily poured from little finger to index finger. Unsurprisingly, the English players partook excessively, leaving them very hungover and, inevitably, defeated the next day. And so, the story of the Patiala peg came to be.

This inspired spin on the old fashioned draws inspiration from the Maharaja's drink. Here, we serve it from a custom-made large-format bottle, but we've adapted the recipe to make it easier for a household environment.

Patiala Peg

Yields 1 litre, serving 10-12 portions.

Ingredients

• 725g blended Scotch
• 130g simple syrup
• 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
• 1g orange bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
• A dash of salt
• 2g xanthan gum powder

Instructions

Place all the ingredients in a sizeable jug. Add 130g water, mix thoroughly, then place it in the refrigerator. It can be stored for about a few weeks.

For serving, pour approximately 90ml of the prepared cocktail into a rocks glass containing ice (traditionally one big block). Drink straight away. To honour tradition, you could use the four-finger measure for authenticity.