What is an Old Fashioned?
An Old Fashioned is probably one of the most classic and oldest of cocktails, and in some ways resembles the many alcoholic punches that were served in England and the Americas prior to the true beginning of the cocktail. Reference to the Old Fashioned dates back to 1806, but the drink didn’t receive its current appellation until the 1880s. The invention of the Old Fashioned likely occurred at the Pendennis Club, a gentleman’s club in Kentucky, and popularity of the drink soon took the Old Fashioned to the more urban environment of New York City. Historians believe that the Astoria Hotel in New York City was the first to offer the Old Fashioned once it became popular in Kentucky.
