Cocktail of the Week: Ambassadors Clubhouse's Patiala Peg – How to Make It
Tale suggests that in 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was determined that his team would triumph over a touring English squad. For a competitive edge, he hosted a lavish party the night before the match, at which he served his guests the legendary Patiala pegs. These are famously large four-finger measure whisky servings, traditionally measured from pinky to index finger. As expected, the English players drank too much, resulting in them being terribly the worse for wear and, consequently, beaten the day after. And so, the story of the Patiala peg came to be.
This Punjabi kind-of Old Fashioned cocktail takes its cue from Singh's drink. At the restaurant, we offer it from a bespoke large-format bottle, but we've adapted the recipe to make it more suitable for a household kitchen.
Patiala Peg
Yields 1 litre, enough for 10-12 people.
Ingredients
- 725g blended scotch whisky
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange bitters (approximately ⅕ tsp)
- A dash of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Method
Combine everything in a large bottle. Include 130g water, stir until fully incorporated, then place it in the refrigerator. It will now keep for up to a few weeks.
When ready to drink, measure out roughly 90ml of the infused whisky into a short glass filled with ice (traditionally one large cube). Serve promptly. If you're feeling traditional, you could use the four-finger measure for authenticity.
