Cocktail This Week: Ambassadors Clubhouse's Patiala Peg – How to Make It

Folklore suggests that in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his cricket team would succeed over a touring English squad. To secure an advantage, he hosted a grand party on the eve of the match, where he served his guests the notorious Patiala pegs. These are famously generous four-finger measure whisky servings, customarily gauged from pinky to forefinger. Predictably, the English players partook excessively, leaving them terribly the worse for wear and, inevitably, defeated the day after. Thus, the legend of the Patiala peg came to be.

This Punjabi spin on the old fashioned draws inspiration from Singh's beverage. At the restaurant, we offer it from a bespoke five-litre bottle, but we've modified the recipe to make it more suitable for a household environment.

Patiala Peg

Produces 1 litre, to serve 10-12 people.

Ingredients

• 725g blended Scotch
• 130g sugar syrup
• 6g Angostura aromatic bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
• 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
• A small pinch of salt
• 2g xanthan gum

Preparation

Put everything in a large bottle. Add 130g water, agitate until fully incorporated, then place it in the refrigerator. You can store it for as long as 21 days.

To serve, pour roughly 90ml of the prepared cocktail into a old fashioned glass containing ice (preferably one big block). Drink immediately. If you're feeling traditional, you could measure it in by hand instead.