Welcome to our cocktail series, "The Happy Hour." It's Friday afternoon. Make yourself a drink.
It's not the holidays until my dad makes Old Fashioneds. He dashes sugar cubes with Angostura bitters--every glass gets two lumps--plus a maraschino cherry, grenadine, and slices of orange, lemon, and lime. Then comes the whiskey (100-proof, if you please) and a splash each of ginger ale and club soda--ten ingredients that make the perfect drink.
He's been mixing Old Fashioneds for as long as I can remember, a tradition passed down from his father, Louis. For the kids, he skips the booze and doubles up on ginger ale. I promise it is the finest Shirley Temple a 6-year-old could dream of. I'll never forget my little brother, Louie, very carefully grasping a fancy Spode Christmas tree lowball with two hands, thrilled at sitting with the grown-ups for cocktails.
If you prefer your drink to be a bit more like the grown-ups, use rye or bourbon to give structure to this refreshing, fruity cocktail. Serve with old-school appetizers like cheese straws and deviled ham--foods from the same era as this recipe--and start a new tradition with your family this holiday season. --Mary-Frances Heck