Old Fashioned

This is a firm Convivio favourite. It's possibly the original cocktail, and is hard to beat for late-night sipping.

Ingredients

• 2 measures Bourbon

• a couple of dashes of bitters

• a few drops of orange bitters (optional)

• 2 teaspoons (total 10ml) of maple syrup / agave syrup

• 2 slices of orange peel, one to spritz, one cut decoratively to garnish

• lots of ice

Method

1. Fill the drinking glass with ice. We'll mix in this glass.

2. Add a few dashes of the bitters over the ice (both if you're using both)

3. Add the maple or agave syrup.

4. Add a small amount of the whiskey to loosen up the mix. Stir thoroughly, but gently, for a while. Don't break up the ice, just mix the ingedients well over the ice. Add more ice if needed.

5. Add the rest of that measure of boubon. Again, stir gentky for a while. Add more ice if needed

6. Add the remaining measure of bourbon, and mix well.

Options

• Add a few drops of food-grade liquid smoke (available in handy bottles like bitters). You may want to add a bit more syrup if you do this.

• Use fresh cherries in summer instead of orange peel. Score the skins lightly.