Drink for This Week: The Patiala Peg – How to Make It
Legend has it that in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his cricket team would succeed over a visiting English side. To secure an advantage, he hosted a splendid party the night before the match, where he served his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These are notoriously large four-finger whisky servings, customarily poured from little finger to index finger. As expected, the English players partook excessively, resulting in them being very the worse for wear and, consequently, beaten the next day. In this way, the myth of the Patiala peg came to be.
This Punjabi variation of Old Fashioned cocktail takes its cue from Singh's drink. At the restaurant, we serve it from a custom-made five-litre bottle, but we've adjusted the formula to make it better suited for a household environment.
The Patiala Peg Recipe
Makes 1 litre, enough for 10-12 portions.
What's Required
- 725g blended scotch whisky
- 130g sugar syrup
- 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (about 1â…“ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about â…• tsp)
- A dash of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Instructions
Place all the ingredients in a sizeable jug. Include 130g water, stir until fully incorporated, then put it in the refrigerator. You can store it for as long as a few weeks.
When ready to drink, pour roughly 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a rocks glass packed with ice (traditionally one big block). Drink immediately. For a traditional touch, you could measure it in by hand for authenticity.
