Drink of the Week: The Patiala Peg Cocktail – How to Make It
Legend claims that back in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was adamant that his team would win over a visiting English side. For a competitive edge, he organized a grand party the night before the match, where he presented his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These are incredibly substantial four-finger measure whisky servings, traditionally gauged from pinky to index finger. Predictably, the English players drank too much, resulting in them being extremely the worse for wear and, inevitably, vanquished the following day. In this way, the myth of the Patiala peg originated.
This Punjabi kind-of Old Fashioned cocktail draws inspiration from the Maharaja's concoction. At the restaurant, we serve it from a custom-made large-format bottle, but we've modified the recipe to make it better suited for a domestic setting.
Patiala Peg
Yields 1 litre, enough for 10-12 portions.
What's Required
- 725g blended Scotch
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Preparation
Place everything in a large bottle. Include 130g water, mix until fully incorporated, then place it in the refrigerator. It will now keep for about 21 days.
When ready to drink, measure out roughly 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a short glass filled with ice (traditionally one large cube). Enjoy straight away. If you're feeling traditional, you could measure it in by hand as they did.
