Woodford Reserve Old Fashioned Week is back. A ten-day celebration of the classic cocktail, the event sees more than 500 venues across the globe showcase their own twist on the bourbon-led American mainstay, with both vintage versions and modern variations on display.
Ahead of the celebration, we spoke to Natalie Ghosn of Sydney’s Hotel Palisade, one of the Sydney venues participating in the festival, about the cocktail and her venue’s inventive take on the drink to mark the occasion.
Old Fashioned Week
Like most of the classics, there’s not all that much to an Old Fashioned: bourbon (or sometimes rye), bitters, sugar and a garnish of orange peel. The drink is really more about championing its lead spirit. For Hotel Palisade licensee Natalie Ghosn, making the bourbon-forward cocktail approachable to everyone – particularly those who haven’t tried it before – is part of the charm of Old Fashioned Week.
“We like to educate people on its history and encourage them to expand their palates from their normal go-to, familiar cocktails,” Ghosn says. “So we encourage conversation about the drink and allow it to be approachable for people who don’t normally drink that spirit.”
A Woodford Reserve Master Class and food pairing
To kick off Old Fashioned Week; Hotel Palisade will host a super-intimate event, compared by the Woodford Reserve Brand Ambassador who will take you on a journey through whiskey. During the Masterclass, expect to try some of the finest and rarest American whiskies – including the Ultra-Premium Woodford Reserve Baccarat Edition, valued at $3,000 – with accompanying food pairings to compliment the variety of flavours. This event has extremely limited availability. Book Tickets here
Hotel Palisade’s Old Salty Girl
Whether you’re a regular imbiber or a first timer, Old Fashioned Week is about offering something for everyone. Old Salty Girl – Hotel Palisade’s brand-new version of the cocktail – is designed to give the drink an approachable, modern edge.
“The whole concept was to pay homage to the history of this building, the Palisade,” says Ghosn. “We thought of what we wanted the cocktail to represent and integrated the flavours into that. We wanted something a little bit feminine and a little bit approachable to people that don’t normally drink Old Fashioneds.”
With the recipe, bartender Davide Mattavelli has gone for a delicately sweet, luxurious interpretation of the staple cocktail. It starts with Woodford Reserve bourbon infused with macadamias in-house to give it a creamy, nutty depth. Mattavelli then adds salted caramel for a sweet and salty edge and, in a fun modern addition, tapioca pearls. The Old Salty Girl is then served in a coupe – as opposed to the classic rocks glass – with a few drops of chocolate bitters and some crushed macadamias.
“It’s just a little bit fun,” Ghosn says. “I think that’s the whole point of cocktails – they’re supposed to be fun, easy-to-drink drinks.”
Here’s how to make Hotel Palisade’s Old Salty Girl at home.
Old Salty Girl
Makes 1 serving
Approx. 2 standard drinks
Ingredients:
60ml Woodford Reserve bourbon infused with Australian macadamia
Ice
10ml salted caramel syrup
5 dashes chocolate bitters
Tapioca pearls
Handful of crushed macadamias
Method:
Add macadamia-infused Woodford Reserve bourbon and ice to a coupe glass. Add salted caramel and tapioca pearls. Stir and garnish with chocolate bitters and crushed macadamias.
The Old Salty Girl is available for a limited time at Hotel Palisade. Find other participating venues offering their own twist on the classic American cocktail during Old Fashioned Week.
This story is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with Woodford Reserve.
