When I moved to Milwaukee 14 years ago I learned a lot about Wisconsinites. They love beer, cheese, and a good Brandy Old Fashioned Sweet. I learned to appreciate a steak and discovered what a Supper Club was.
While my wheat and dairy sensitivities have made the first two more infrequent than I’d like, luckily the Wisconsin Brandy Old Fashioned Sweet has become a go-to co*cktail. My love of steak has only deepened and whenever I find something that claims to be a supper club, I try it. I learned that nowhere else in the world does supper clubs and old fashioneds the way Wisconsin does. Tip: If you ever find yourself in Milwaukee, the best supper club hands down is Five O’Clock Steakhouse.
When I left Milwaukee to move to Manhattan (the city not the co*cktail), I was shocked, SHOCKED that I could not find a good brandy old fashioned and that’s when I started making them myself. I knew what went into a good co*cktail, I had ordered them countless times. That’s when I also decided to invest in a proper bar, another milestone in adulting.
Jump directly to my Brandy Old Fashioned Sweet recipe.
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What Is an Old Fashioned?
After Mad Men debuted the old fashioned co*cktail had a major resurgence, especially amongst the hipsters.
While official origins are somewhat disputed, the old fashioned has been around since at least the 1850s and was created to go back to the basics of co*cktail making. According to Wikipedia, traditional co*cktail ingredients were spirits, sugar, water, and bitters. That’s exactly what is in the brandy old fashioned sweet, and then some.
The typical old-fashioned is made with whiskey, but what I discovered in Wisconsin is that an old fashioned made with brandy has a different, more mild flavor.
Whiskey is made from grain and brandy is made from fruit…so there you go. Beer vs. Wine (I’m kidding, but not really). Brandy is naturally gluten-free so if you order this out you don’t have to worry if you have a sensitivity, if you order a whiskey old-fashioned you can get gluten-free, but you’ll need to be brand specific.
Many people wonder if brandy is a sweet drink. It’s not sweet per se, although you can get brandy in different fruit variations, but it is usually sweeter than whiskey.
Why is the Wisconsin Old Fashioned Made With Brandy?
Fun fact, Wisconsin is the #1 consumer of brandy in the U.S. according to Korbel.You may know that Wisconsin is most definitely not the #1 most populous state in the U.S and I like to think its high ranking in brandy consumption is due to the unofficial co*cktail.
According to the Green Bay Gazette (that’s pretty Wisconsin, right?) brandy became very popular during the war when grain was being shipped to feed Europe and it basically has stuck around ever since.
Best Brandy for an Old Fashioned Sweet
Korbel is the largest producer of Brandy in the U.S. and it is served in bars and restaurants all across Wisconsin. When using alcohol in a mixed drink, instead of drinking neat, there is no need to go for the most expensive top-shelf choice. Korbel is a perfect brandy for the Old Fashioned. If you are in Sonoma, California you can even visit the distillery.
What Bar Tools Do You Need to Make a Brandy Old Fashioned?
Muddler | Dissolving the sugar cube and breaking up the cherry and orange flavors are key to this co*cktail.
Jigger | An easy way to measure, and part of any well-stocked bar.
Double Old Fashioned Glasses | The drink is in the name! These cut crystal glasses are made for this co*cktail. They’re pricey but gorgeous and make great gifts!
I recommend getting large ice cube molds – the larger the ice the less it melts and waters down the drink.
If you want to make a Brandy Old Fashioned Sour use grapefruit soda, like 50/50 or Squirt instead of Sprite.
If you are looking for an alcohol free version, check out this Virgin Old Fashioned recipe.
More co*cktails to try:
Apple Cider Donut Martini
Brandy Manhattan
Dirty Chai Martini
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brandy: It's traditional to use Korbel (Core-bell) brandy in a Wisconsin old fashioned, but at the end of the day, any decent brandy will do. If you really can't stand to use brandy, just swap for bourbon. 7-up, sprite, squirt, or club soda: Totally your choice here based on whether you want it sweet, sour, or press.
“ 'Sweet' is with 7-Up, 'sour' is with Squirt soda or pre-packaged sour mix, and 'press' is half 7-Up, half club soda,” says Brian Bartels, author of The United States of co*cktails, and owner of Settle Down Tavern in Madison. “Most people opt for 'sweet' or 'press. ' ”
That is to say, a properly made Old Fashioned shouldn't taste sweet, nor should it taste bitter, nor should it taste overwhelmingly of straight whiskey. When you sip the drink and can't pick out any one of these qualities over the others, you've got a proper Old Fashioned.
If you want a more sweet Old Fashioned, ask for less bitters in your drink. Typical Old Fashioneds don't have much more than a splash of bitters in them. However, every bartender is different, and your bar could use more bitters on average. For example, “I'll have a Woodford Reserve Old Fashioned, extra sweet.”
For the unfamiliar, the old fashioned co*cktail in just about every place other than Wisconsin is traditionally made with a whiskey, like bourbon, sugar and bitters. But in Wisconsin, brandy usually replaces whiskey — and it's most often poured over a mixture of muddled cherries, orange slices, sugar and bitters.
Sour or sweet? Those are the million dollar questions. If you're ordering an Old Fashioned in Wisconsin, brandy sweet is the correct answer. That's because the Brandy Old Fashioned is the (un)official co*cktail of Wisconsin.
When comparing the two, bourbon tends to offer a sweeter and more intense flavor profile, while brandy provides a broader spectrum of fruity and nuanced tastes. Bartenders often choose bourbon when crafting co*cktails that require a bold and assertive base, emphasizing its caramel and vanilla undertones.
In the case of the Old Fashioned, the trick stuck around and remained popular in Wisconsin, even in the 21st century as modern bartenders reclaimed the classic no-fruit recipe.
The best old fashioned recipes call for sugar to balance the alcohol. I use simple syrup, which quickly dissolves and is simple to make. It also allows us to play around and use brown sugar instead of white sugar for the syrup, giving our co*cktail a caramel-like flavor that works well with whiskey or rum.
BEST OLD FASHIONED IN THE WORLD 2 oz Jack Daniel's Single Barrel 4 dashes Angostura Bitters 4 dashes Orange Bitters 1 tsp Rich Syrup - Demerara 2 drops Salt Water Orange Peel, Lemon Peel A touch of love Listen, this ain't a Wisconsin fruit salad in a glass, I didn't use rye whiskey, and a lemon peel slaps in an old ...
Purists might disagree, but it's okay to put a little fruit in your Old Fashioned. We're not advocating for turning it into a fruit co*cktail, but a little cherry garnish, as long as it's the right cherry, is perfectly fine. And the right cherry is the Luxardo cherry.
Start by saying the type of whisky you fancy, followed by any tweaks you want to make. It could be with a twist, an extra dash of bitters or syrup instead of sugar. Not sure where to start? Stick to a classic with our go-to order… 'Pour me an Old Fashioned with Ballantine's and an orange twist thanks'.
It may surprise some to learn that the Badger State consumes more brandy than anywhere else in the United States. In 2019, Wisconsinites accounted for more than half of the worldwide sales of Korbel brandy.
They also have distinct tastes. A Manhattan tastes slightly of wine, thanks to the presence of the vermouth, and it's relatively bitter. On the other hand, an Old Fashioned is slightly sweeter, although bitterness still plays a major role.
Whiskey: A classic old-fashioned co*cktail is traditionally made with bourbon or rye whiskey. I recommend a high-proof bourbon with bold flavor notes, so that its flavor will not be overpowered by the orange and bitters. Bitters: Angostura bitters are most commonly used in this co*cktail.
The most popular type of brandy alcohol, Cognac is an aged, grape-based brandy that's smooth and rich thanks to a laborious and time-intensive process guarded by several legal parameters—from the grapes that distillers are able to use (mainly ugni blanc) to various aging and blending restrictions.
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Introduction: My name is Kieth Sipes, I am a zany, rich, courageous, powerful, faithful, jolly, excited person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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