17 Old Fashioned Cocktail Recipe Variations

Around 1806, the first-ever recorded definition of "cocktail" states, "a mixture of spirit, water, bitters and sugar" in a newspaper from Hudson, New York called "The Balance and Columbian Repository. The definition fits the Old Fashioned and other variations. In the 1860s, more components were added to cocktails such as absinthe, Curacao, and other liqueurs. Despite the different concoctions sprouting, people never forgot the original or "old fashioned" way of the cocktail. In 1880, in Louisville, Kentucky, a master whiskey distiller by the name of James E. Pepper was given credit for the creation of the old fashioned cocktail. It was said that the drink was created by a bartender in his honor at a private social club called The Pendennis Club. Not long after, Pepper brought the recipe with him to the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel Bar still in New York City. It was at that moment that the recipe was stuck and its popularity grew and got featured in many recipe books. The original version made use of rye whiskey, bourbon or Irish whiskey, those that were available in America during the 19th century. Modifications then followed including brandy and the addition of citrus and cherry for added flavor and look.