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Brandy Old Fashioned

The Quirky Foodster Team

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Rocks glass
Glass
Orange slice and cocktail cherry
Garnish

Ingredients

  • Brandy — 60 ml (2 oz)
  • Cube Sugar cube, or simple syrup, or 10 ml (1 cube, or 1 tsp) — 1
  • Angostura bitters — 2-3 dashes
  • Lemon-lime soda or soda water (to top) — 30 ml (1 oz)

Method

  1. Muddle the sugar cube with the bitters and a splash of soda in the glass.
  2. Add the brandy and a large ice cube, and stir.
  3. Top with a splash more soda water or lemon-lime soda.
  4. Garnish with an orange slice and cherry.

Description: Wisconsin's beloved regional Old Fashioned variant, made with brandy instead of whiskey and often topped with soda.

Cultural Background: A defining Wisconsin bar tradition, tracing to the state's large 19th-century German immigrant population, who favored brandy over whiskey.

Tips: Ask for it "sweet" (soda), "sour" (lemon-lime soda plus a sour mix), or "press" (half soda, half 7-Up) — all are regional Wisconsin orders.

Variations: "Press" style splits the top between soda water and lemon-lime soda.

Serving Suggestion: Serve over ice, muddled fruit optional depending on local Wisconsin bar style.

Nutrition: Approx. 180 kcal per serving

FAQs:

Q: Why brandy in Wisconsin specifically?
A: The state's large German immigrant population historically favored brandy, especially Korbel, over the whiskey more common elsewhere in the US.