A Wisconsin old-fashioned is not your average old-fashioned; it is a sparkling take on a classic, muddled with brandy, sugar, bitters, and orange and finished with a crisp soda pour.
I moved to Milwaukee at age 21 after leaving Chicago at 18. My early drinking years were spent in the Milwaukee bar scene, and I had my first drinks in Wisconsin. Although I have a strong Chicago base, I am a Wisconsin girl. I even support the Bucks because I adore Giannis.
Thus, cherries, oranges, brandy, and 7-up were used to make my first Wisconsin old-fashioned. For many years, I was unaware that it was not old-fashioned or that there was such intense discussion in the cocktail industry.
I will always enjoy the cherry-packed highball Wisconsin offers in a rock glass but do not get me wrong. I have tried a typical Wisconsin old-fashioned, and I still adore it.
What is an old-fashioned Wisconsin?
Bourbon, a sugar cube, and a few dashes of bitters make up a typical Wisconsin old-fashioned to start. You usually garnish it with a cherry and an orange peel if you prefer a bit more citrusy-sweet. It is a nice treat for times you do not want bourbon straight and is especially great for people who can not drink it that way. Because you do not always.
A Wisconsin old-fashioned adds a few more contentious components while adhering to a similar blueprint. It is blended with the sugar cube and bitters rather than merely garnished with the orange and cherry. Instead of bourbon, brandy is poured on top, and the most contentious addition is soda.
Press, sour, or sweet
“Can I have a brandy Wisconsin old-fashioned sweet?” is how you order an old-fashioned in Wisconsin if you want to appear local.
Because you are a very nice Wisconsinite, you will ask it like a question and add “sweet” to the order to indicate that you like soda. This implies that you will have your traditional 7-up or Sprite.
Otherwise, you might choose to have a Wisconsin old-fashioned press or sour. A “press” will be either club soda or half club soda, half 7-up, and a “sour” will be made with Squirt or sour mix (or Jolly Good, if you can find it, but I rarely could).
I experimented with Wisconsin’s old-fashioned ways in every direction while I was living in Wisconsin.
Say “bourbon Wisconsin old fashioned” if you want a standard old fashioned. A bartender is unlikely to assume that you wish soda in that, but if they are unsure, they will ask, “Sour or sweet?” and you can explain.
Korbel brandy:
Korbel brandy makes the ideal Wisconsin Old Fashioned, which can be served press, sour, or sweet. Add some olives or cherries as a garnish, and this Wisconsin staple will succeed! Perhaps it is because I am a Wisconsin native. However, I adore a Wisconsin old-fashioned. Particularly when the temperature drops! The mix of oranges, cherries, and brandy can warm you from the inside out. Therefore, it is one of my favorite winter cocktails ever.
I will always remember the first time I ordered an old-fashioned one outside of Wisconsin. While visiting friends in Michigan, I requested an Old-Fashioned Seltzer. And the perplexed expression I received in return? It will always be etched in my memory.
I had no idea that individuals in 49 50 states order a Wisconsin old-fashioned; no explanation is necessary. And ever since, my admiration for how we do things in Wisconsin has grown!
Because you can make it sweet, sour, seltzer, or press to order here in Wisconsin. And whether you add olives, cherries, or no garnish at all… Each one tastes just as good as the last! Let us toast!
The Wisconsin Old Fashioned history
The origins of the Wisconsin Old Fashioned can be traced back to the years following World War II when many distilleries were forced to close due to the deployment of soldiers and grain abroad for the war effort.
A group of Wisconsin liquor distributors discovered a hoard of 30,000 cases of well-aged Christian Brothers Brandy, which was promptly purchased for distribution in Wisconsin. At the time, Americans had few options. As a result, brandy was added to numerous previously unheard-of cocktails, such as Wisconsin Old Fashioneds, and the process of creating cocktails was revolutionized.
Smoked Old Fashioned To Craft This Smoky Whiskey Cocktail
Ingredients for this recipe
Slices of orange: I used half of a round orange slice for each cocktail because muddled oranges are a staple in Wisconsin Old Fashioned. You can use any orange on hand, but I prefer Navel oranges because of their sweet, somewhat bitter flavor.
Cherries: Cherries are another essential component of a Wisconsin Old Fashioned. I used the most popular maraschino cherries for this drink.
Sugar cubes: These sugar cubes give this beverage a hint of sweetness. I made one cocktail with one sugar cube. You can also add a little simple syrup if you would like.
Bitters: Without a few dashes of bitters, no Wisconsin Old Fashioned is complete. Bitters are the most widely used. You are welcome to try different flavors if you would like, although Angostura’s Aromatic
Brandy: Korbel, not just any brandy, is used to make traditional Wisconsin Old Fashioned. I used 1 1/2 ounces (1 shot) for each drink.
Lastly, as soda is essential to a Wisconsin Old Fashioned, I added it to the top of each drink. Try seltzer water, tart sodas like Squirt, or sweet drinks like Sprite or Sierra Mist.
How to prepare an Old Fashioned from Wisconsin
Muddle the bitters, sugar, orange, and cherry. Put the orange slice, cherry, sugar cube, and three to five dashes of bitters in a rock glass. Use a wooden spoon or a cocktail muddler to muddle.
Pour in brandy and ice. Add 1 1/2 ounces of Korbel brandy after filling the glass with ice.
Add soda on top. Pour seltzer or sweet or sour lemon-lime soda on top.
Effuse a garnish. Adding green olives or maraschino cherries as garnish.
Press, Sour, or Sweet?
Using a mixer is one of the primary characteristics that distinguish Wisconsin Old Fashioned. Wisconsinites offer their old-fashioned in one of three ways: sweet, sour, or press. Traditional Wisconsin old fashioneds are made with whiskey, sugar, water, and bitters. An “Old Fashioned Press” is topped with a blend of sweet and sour soda and seltzer water, an “Old Fashioned Sweet” is topped with a sweet white soda like Sprite, and an “Old Fashioned Sour” is topped with a sour soda like Squirt.
Usually, bourbon (or whiskey) comes to mind when you think of an old-fashioned. In Wisconsin, however, a traditional order is frequently explained: Do you want bourbon or brandy with it?
Because being old-fashioned is the norm in Wisconsin, JC Cunningham, owner of the cocktail bar PufferFish in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, says, “A Wisconsin old-fashioned is sweet and simple.” “It is lovely to enjoy two ounces of brandy without tasting very strongly.”
My own favorite? A Traditional Seltzer: Just seltzer water on top!
A citrus soda, or pop as Wisconsinites call it, is frequently placed on top. Additionally, you must express your desires: sweet (7Up, Sprite, or similar lemon-lime soda), sour (often created with Squirt or sour mix), or press (half sweet, half plain soda). Frequently, maraschino oranges or cherries
The main attraction is brandy, which is frequently Korbel California brandy. More than 60% of Korbel’s brandy is sold to Wisconsin, making it the fourth-largest producer in the US. For most of its 86-year history, Bryant’s Cocktail Lounge, Milwaukee’s oldest cocktail lounge, has served Wisconsin old-fashioned the same way: Korbel brandy, simple syrup, Angostura bitters, and your preferred soda.
“There are a lot of legends about how this cocktail got its start, but I like the romantic one where the Korbel Brothers brought American brandy to the Midwest at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair,” Cunningham adds.
According to legend, Wisconsinites shipped the spirit by the truckload after falling in love with it. Then came Prohibition, which made alcohol illegal. Moonshine runs and bootlegging between Illinois and Canada have a history in Wisconsin. People would add fruit and sugar to the batches of moonshine or bathtub spirits to make them more appealing.
