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

Tale claims that back in 1920, Bhupinder Singh, was set that his cricket team would triumph over a visiting English squad. To gain the upper hand, he threw a splendid party the night before the match, at which he offered his guests the famous Patiala pegs. These were famously generous four-finger whisky pours, historically measured from pinky to forefinger. As expected, the English players partook excessively, leaving them terribly hungover and, consequently, vanquished the day after. And so, the legend of the Patiala peg originated.

This Punjabi spin on the old fashioned takes its cue from the Maharaja's beverage. At the restaurant, we offer it from a specially crafted large-format bottle, but we've modified the recipe to make it more suitable for a home kitchen.

The Patiala Peg Recipe

Makes 1 litre, enough for 10-12 drinks.

Ingredients

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

Instructions

Combine all the ingredients in a sizeable jug. Include 130g water, mix thoroughly, then place it in the fridge. You can store it for up to a few weeks.

To serve, dispense approximately 90ml of the Patiala peg mixture into a short glass filled with ice (preferably one big block). Drink immediately. To honour tradition, you could pour it using your fingers instead.