Oaxaca Old Fashioned
A twist on Old Fashioned
Prep time:
A modern classic born in New York in 2007: the structure of an Old Fashioned, but built on agave instead of whiskey. Complex, dry, with a smoky finish that lingers.
Ingredients
- 45 ml reposado tequila
- 15 ml joven mezcal
- 5 ml agave syrup
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- One large ice cube
Preparation
- In a mixing glass, combine the tequila, mezcal, agave syrup and bitters.
- Add ice and stir for 25-30 seconds. Stir, never shake: the goal is to chill without aerating.
- Strain into the rocks glass over one large ice cube.
- Flame the orange peel over the surface and drop it in.
Bartender’s notes
Can you use agave in an Old Fashioned?
Yes, and this drink is the proof. The Oaxaca Old Fashioned changes two things at once: whiskey for tequila and mezcal, and sugar for agave syrup, which comes from the same plant as both spirits and so sits with them better than sugar does. It works in a whiskey Old Fashioned too, with one adjustment: agave is sweeter than sugar syrup, so use half — the same difference there is between this recipe and the Old Fashioned — and taste your way up. And with mezcal alone, no tequila, you get a Mezcal Old Fashioned: smokier and drier, for those who already know mezcal.
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