Boulevardier
45 ml Bourbon, 30 ml Campari, 30 ml Sweet vermouth, 1 Orange twist
Photo: Oldfashioned-cocktail · All credits
Ingredients
Measures below are multiplied for 6 drinks. Unmeasurable amounts such as “a splash” are left as written.
- 360 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 360 ml line. Bourbon
- 60 ml Jigger One large side (50 ml) of a standard jigger, plus two teaspoons. Simple syrup - Or a demerara syrup for a rounder drink
- 24 dashes Bottle 24 quick shake of the bottle - each a few drops, about a millilitre. Angostura bitters
- 6 slices Orange slice (optional)
Measured in Millilitres (UK). Sign in to read these in American measures. Print a kitchen card at this size.
What the jigger, the spoons and the jug hold, in millilitres and in fluid ounces, is on the measures reference.
Quick version
- Stir whiskey, syrup and bitters over ice.
- Strain over one large cube and add orange.
Method
Pitcher (6 drinks)Pitcher (6 drinks) - about 420 ml of measured ingredients, before ice and dilution.
Timings and per-glass steps below are written for one drink and are not scaled. A full jug takes longer to chill, so stir or shake until it is properly cold rather than by the clock, and pour over fresh ice one glass at a time.
- Add the syrup and the bitters to a mixing glass.
- Pour in the bourbon and stir briefly without ice to dissolve the syrup.
- Add ice and stir for 30 seconds until properly cold.
- Strain over one large cube in a rocks glass.
- Express an orange peel over the top and drop it in.
Serve it
Volumes in this story are multiplied for the size above, along with the ingredients. Years, ratios and the capacities of glasses and jugs are left as written.
Old Fashioned
The original cocktail, from a time when a cocktail was simply spirit, sugar, water and bitters - and everything that has happened since is a variation on it. It is also the kindest thing you can do for a decent bottle of bourbon on a cold evening.
Getting it right
Bitters are not decoration: four dashes is a normal amount, and the drink is flabby and sweet without them. Dissolve the sugar in a little water first rather than trying to stir it into the whiskey, and then stir the whole thing for longer than you think you should - thirty seconds over plenty of ice. One big cube in the glass, so it stays cold without turning to water in ten minutes. Express the orange peel over the top, and take your time.
Tasting notes
Sweet, spiced and warm with oak, the orange oil sitting right on the surface of the drink. Strong, slow and reassuring: the one to make when the evening needs to settle down.
More Bourbon cocktails
Gold Rush
60 ml Bourbon, 20 ml Lemon juice, 20 ml Honey syrup, 1 Lemon twist
Mint Julep
60 ml Bourbon, 8 leaves Mint, 15 ml Simple syrup, 1 Mint sprig