Drink of the Week: Ambassadors Clubhouse's Patiala Peg – Recipe
Folklore claims that during 1920, the Maharaja of Patiala, was adamant that his team would succeed over a touring English team. To gain the upper hand, he threw a splendid party the night before the match, where he offered his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These are incredibly substantial four-finger measure whisky pours, traditionally measured from pinky to index finger. Predictably, the English players overindulged, resulting in them being terribly the worse for wear and, inevitably, defeated the following day. And so, the story of the Patiala peg originated.
This Punjabi kind-of Old Fashioned cocktail takes its cue from the Maharaja's drink. In our establishment, we offer it from a specially crafted five-litre bottle, but we've modified the recipe to make it better suited for a home setting.
Patiala Peg
Produces 1 litre, to serve 10-12 portions.
You Will Need
- 725g Scotch whisky blend
- 130g sugar syrup (1:1)
- 6g Angostura bitters (approximately 1⅓ tsp)
- 1g orange-flavoured bitters (about ⅕ tsp)
- A small pinch of salt
- 2g xanthan gum
Preparation
Combine all the ingredients in a large bottle. Pour in 130g water, mix to combine, then place it in the refrigerator. It will now keep for up to three weeks.
To serve, dispense roughly 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a old fashioned glass filled with ice (preferably one large cube). Drink straight away. If you're feeling traditional, you could pour it using your fingers as they did.
