My preferred recipe:
In a rocks glass:
- Splash of simple syrup
- Two good dashes each of angostura bitters and peychaud's bitters.
- Add the large whiskey ice cube/ball (or 2-3 regular cubes if you lack the large one)
- Just a drop, no more than half a bar spoon each, of absinthe and luxardo maraschino liqueur
- 2 oz rye whisky (you can go bourbon if you want it sweeter, but I prefer the spice of rye). You can go pretty cheap on the rye; Old Overholt or Rittenhouse are fine. I prefer the 100 proof bottled in bond of either, but 80 proof is ok in a pinch.
- Stir to chill and dilute until you see the walls of the glass start to fog up.
- Cut a lemon peel, squeeze to express the lemon oil over the drink and rub the sides/rim of the glass, drop in as garnish.
If you want a less fancy version you can skip the liqueurs, and it's still a great drink. I don't even bother making it if I don't have a fresh lemon, though. The candy-like nose of the lemon oil really puts the drink over the top.
Unfortunately loving this style of Old Fashioned usually makes it impossible for me to order one out, since they're almost always a Mid Century style, thanks in part to Mad Men, and IMO those are junk by comparison.
