Drink This Week: The Patiala Peg – Recipe

Tale suggests that back in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was determined that his team would triumph over a visiting English squad. To secure an advantage, he organized a splendid party on the eve of the match, at which he offered his guests the legendary Patiala pegs. These are incredibly large four-finger whisky servings, customarily gauged from pinky to index finger. Unsurprisingly, the English players drank too much, leaving them extremely the worse for wear and, consequently, vanquished the day after. Thus, the story of the Patiala peg came to be.

This inspired kind-of Old Fashioned cocktail takes its cue from the Maharaja's beverage. At the restaurant, we offer it from a specially crafted large-format bottle, but we've adjusted the instructions to make it better suited for a household setting.

Patiala Peg

Makes 1 litre, enough for 10-12 people.

You Will Need

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

Method

Place all the ingredients in a big container. Add 130g water, mix to combine, then put it in the fridge. It will now keep for about 21 days.

For serving, dispense roughly 90ml of the infused whisky into a short glass packed with ice (preferably one large cube). Serve immediately. To honour tradition, you could use the four-finger measure instead.