Barrel Aged Old Fashioned Recipe

Welcoming the guests with a distinctly crafted cocktail is the best way to make an occasion evokable for lifelong. If the selection of a classic drink is putting you in a dilemma, go with the smooth-flavored Barrel Aged Old Fashioned Recipe. 

To add a top-class variation to the Old Fashioned cocktails, a small yet significant amount of Barrel-aged Gin is enough. Those who are great fans of Old Fashioned cocktails along with the twist of a Gin, will enjoy it immensely. Undoubtedly each sip of this slightly sophisticated & modified old-fashioned cocktail can be traced back to the era of the 1800s. 

Through this guide, you will learn to create the barrel-aged old-fashioned drink from scratch. 

How to prepare the barrel-aged gin for an Old Fashioned cocktail? 

The primary ingredients to prepare gin are juniper, coriander and angelica but to tickle or bang the palate with distinctive tastes, you can add numerous fruits, berries, nuts, flowers and roots etc. These exotic additionals will offer opportunities to explore the legacy of an Old Fashioned cocktail. 

Take a look at how can you age the gin in a wooden barrel. 

1. Take a medium-sized barrel according to the amount of gin you want to age inside it. Rinse it properly with the water and check the leakages if there are any. 
2. Fill the barrel with the water and let the wood of the barrel soak the maximum water so that it can be swelled enough. Now pour the water out and let it dry completely. 
3. Put all the required ingredients (juniper, coriander, angelica, and other additional things) inside the barrel through a funnel. 
4. Keep the barrel filled with all these for at least six weeks but roll it once or twice a day for mixing the ingredients well. You must ensure that ingredients are accessing the entire surface of the barrel inside while rolling it so that the aroma of water-soaked wood gets infused in it. 
5. After completing the aging duration you can pour out the well-mixed material through a funnel into a clean & sterilized bottle with a perfect sealing cap or lid. 

The barrel-aged gin is ready to mix with other ingredients to create a classic Old Fashioned Cocktail. 

What are the key ingredients for mixing the Barrel-Aged Old Fashioned Cocktail? 

The below-listed constituents of the Old Fashioned cocktail will add more depth and warmth to the barrel-aged gin.

• Barrel Aged gin (45 ml)
• Simple syrup (30 ml)
• Angostura or another desired bitter (30 ml)
• Freshly sliced one or two orange peels 
• One Luxardo Maraschino cherry (for garnishing) 

What characteristic each ingredient of Barrel Aged Old Fashioned recipe carries? 

The barrel-aged old-fashioned cocktail recipe is no less than an intriguing story where each character is irreplaceable due to their significant roles. 

Another way to say this is, that a fusion of great flavors is fabricated by all the elements diluted in the mixing glass of an old-fashioned cocktail. Let’s know what qualities each one has. 

Barrel aged Gin – 

Aged in the oak / wooden barrel, the Gin carries the dark color of whiskey and an intense note of caramel and vanilla like your favorite bourbon holds. Apart from the three key ingredients, the additional nuts, berries and fruits etc infuse magical aroma and flavors as well. Due to the presence of Gin, you can expect the final flavor of an old old-fashioned cocktail like warm, boozy and slightly bitter. 

Bitters –

The sole onus of balancing the old-fashioned cocktail is on the shoulders of bitters. Usually, professional mixologists or bartenders pick the Angostura aromatic and orange bitters for a classic old-fashioned but you can choose some other options as well. Just a few dashes of bitters will finely balance the flavors added to the cocktail glass. 

Simple Sugar Syrup – 

Though one can muddle or crush the white or brown sugar cubes while beginning the mixing of the cocktail, the use of simple syrup adds smoothness to the cocktail. You must prepare it before initiating the process of cocktail mixing. The simple syrup also lessens the chances of straining the drink. 

Orange peels – 

A fragrance and flavor of oily citrus aroma acts as an important player in modern cocktails as well as in old-fashioned ones. But for best results, use just a little portion of the peel. 

Luxardo Maraschino Cherries –

To equalize the bitter & strong taste of gin and aromatic bitters, you can add one or two rinsed cherries to the rock glass. It also uplifts the display of the old-fashioned cocktail. 

Method of mixing the Barrel-Aged Old Fashioned Recipe – 

Creating an Old Fashioned cocktail like a professional mixologist requires the compliance of the below-listed steps. 

1. Take an old-fashioned rock glass.
2. Fill it with the required amount of barrel Gin, aromatic bitters and simple sugar syrup. 
3. Give this mixture a good stir for at least 30 seconds. 
4. Put one large ice cube in it or you can use 2-3 small cubes also. 
5. For garnishing, take the well-sliced orange peel and twist it over the top of the cocktail glass. 
6. Now run the peel smoothly on the rim of the old-fashioned cocktail glass and leave the twisted peel in the glass. 
7. Pick one or two Luxardo cherries and tuck them in a cocktail pin for placing on the rim of the glass. You can simply dip them also in the cocktail glass. 

Your Barrel Aged Old Fashioned Cocktail is ready to serve and say cheers simultaneously.  

Some DOs and DON’Ts for making your barrel-aged old-fashioned recipe unique – 

• Using a hefty amount of sugar can ruin the other flavors added to the cocktail glass. Try to place just one cube or half a teaspoon of simple syrup in the glass. 
• The quality of the bitters also impacts the overall taste of the cocktail. Therefore choose it wisely for your drink. 
• Don’t miss adding a splash of water to the old-fashioned drink. It helps in mixing the ingredients finely. 
• Muddling the cherry in the old-fashioned cocktail is nothing less than harming it with excess sweetness and floating parts in the whole glass. Avoid it.
• Instead of 2-3 small and hazy ice cubes place a large and clear ice cube in the glass. 
• The beauty of old-fashioned cocktails lies in the stirring not in shaking. A good stir is enough to blend the flavors perfectly. 
• Use a traditional old-fashioned glass for presenting this classic cocktail. 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) –