Maple Old Fashioned
Mar 18, 2026 05:12 AM
My favorite way to make an old fashioned cocktail — good-quality bourbon and bitters, a hint of maple syrup, and a generous twist of orange peel. Plus maybe a Luxardo cherry on top.
A few years ago, my husband and I abandoned the traditional teaspoon of sugar in our old fashioned cocktails and switched to mixing them up with a hint of maple syrup instead. And I’ve gotta say, we’ve never looked back.
Team Maple Syrup, all the way!
Especially when it comes to this classic cocktail. Since an old fashioned is made with bourbon — which is naturally a sweeter whiskey already — it doesn’t need to be loaded up with extra sugar. Instead, I love adding just a tiny hint of maple syrup. It’s flavor is much more interesting than sugar anyway, and it brings out those warm, rich, caramel-y flavors in the bourbon perfectly. Just add to that a few dashes of bitters, a nice bright squeeze of orange peel, plus maybe a Luxardo cherry on top — and you’ve got yourself a lovely, perfectly-balanced old fashioned to enjoy.
Let’s make one!
Ingredients:
- 2 ounces bourbon or rye
- 3-4 dashes Angostura aromatic bitters
- 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
- orange peel
- ice
- (optional): 1 Luxardo maraschino cherry
Prep Time:
3 minutes
Total Time:
3 minutes
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