Wisconsin’s devotion to brandy is well documented. In fact, half of the Korbel brandy sold around the world is poured right here in the Badger State. And much of it finds its way into our state drink (sorry, Bloody Mary): the Wisconsin Old Fashioned.
The Wisconsin Old Fashioned is a spinoff of the classic Old Fashioned. There is some crossover—cherries, orange, bitters, and sugar, for example. But that’s where the similarities end. If you think of the traditional Old Fashioned as a debonair socialite, you can think of the Wisconsin Old Fashioned as its blue-collar, Rust Belt cousin. No fuss, no pretense, just delicious drinking.
While the rest of the country associates the “traditional” Old Fashioned with the holiday season, we Wisconsinites enjoy our version year-round. Sure, do some traditionalists believe our version is blasphemous? Yes. Could it boggle a coastie’s brain to see soda added to an Old Fashioned? Perhaps. But I’m here to tell you, we Wisconsinites know our drinks. And the Wisconsin Old Fashioned is good.
It’s a good thing you don’t need to be a cheesehead to enjoy this delicious cocktail—just don’t knock it ’til you try it.
About the Wisconsin Old Fashioned
There are various stories on how Wisconsin’s love affair with brandy truly began. It’s commonly said to have started over 130 years ago when Korbel brought its brandy to the Midwest at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition. Wisconsin’s large population of German immigrants—busy making the state’s flagship beers Pabst, Schlitz, Blatz and Miller—who were said to have caught on to the liquor.
Other theories point to a postwar recovery plan. In 1947 President Truman shut down the nation’s distilleries for two months in an effort to conserve grains. Wisconsin being Wisconsin couldn’t go that long without a good drink, so distributors snatched up a stockpile of California brand—about 30,000 cases.
Regardless of its history, brandy has cemented itself in the annals of Wisconsin’s history—and led to the Wisconsin Old Fashioned, Sconnie’s favorite way to imbibe.
How To Make a Wisconsin Old Fashioned
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While in Wisconsin, if you want a “traditional” Old Fashioned, you’ll have to specify. The Wisconsin Old Fashioned is the default, here. In fact, when you order you have to state whether you want it “sweet” or “sour”—but we’ll get to that in a minute.
A Wisconsin Old Fashioned starts with an orange slice, a few jarred maraschino cherries, a sugar cube, and a few splashes of Angostura bitters at the bottom of a rocks glass. The mixture gets muddled until the fruits are juiced and the sugar is more or less dissolved, afterward it’s topped with ice.
Then you add the liquor. While you could technically order a Wisconsin Old Fashioned with whiskey or bourbon, if you want to get the full Wisconsin experience, stick to brandy—it’s the default anyway. The glass is then filled with brandy—two ounces or more, depending on the bartender.
The drink is then topped with “sweet”soda like 7Up or Sprite or “sour” soda like Squirt. Though less common, you can order “press” which is half lemon-lime soda, half club soda. Garnish it with some cherries and another orange slice and there you go—the perfect Wisconsin Old Fashioned!
There’s just something about a spiced, fruity, and warm brandy that works so well with cherry, orange, bitters and some nice lemon-lime soda. It’s great on a hot day, it’s great for a cozy night in, it’s as great at a dive bar as it is at a fancy supper club—and boy, it sure is great in our basement bars. Cheers to Wisco’s tastiest cocktail!