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Old Fashioned
Made for us by: Joe Callison at Django, 210 10th St.
Sterling Cooper partner and creative director Don Draper's drink of choice, the Old Fashioned is one of the earliest cocktails. You drink it with your pals - and with your many female companions. You drink it with business partners. And you drink it alone. Many a barkeep will look with bewilderment at your order. Their lack of confidence is your cue to step in, take control, guide their hand. If not, you may end up with a sugary mess that hides the manly liquor you so desperately want - no, need - to taste.
Recipe: Drop a thin orange slice and cherry in the bottom of a glass. Add a sugar cube (or a few drops of loose sugar), and a splash or two of bitters. Muddle together gently, add ice and two ounces of bourbon or rye.
Insider tip: Some bartenders start with simple syrup. Nu-uh. Stick with sugar - a cube, if possible.
Who would order it: On the rare occasion one is ordered at Django, it's "typically a 'Mad Men' character," says Callison. Guys in fine suits, winding down the day. Or company climbers with eyes for the corner office.
Ordering an Old Fashioned says: You, much like the Old Fashioned itself, are, at the end of the day, simple and refined. Masculine, respected, a bit esoteric. When you're not in a cocktail mood, you drink your scotch clean and your rye straight.
Tim Paluch
