The Old Fashioned holds the unique distinction of being the original blueprint for the word "cocktail," a simple morning elixir of spirits, sugar, and bitters, diluted with a bit of water. As bartenders began complicating drinks with European liqueurs and absinthe, traditionalists rebelled and demanded their drinks be mixed the "old-fashioned way." The drink would eventually be combined with heavy amounts of fruit and soda, a sugary style that dominated for decades, until the craft cocktail renaissance returned the drink to its clean, spirit-forward 19th-century origins.
The Old Fitzgerald brand began in 1884 as a marketing myth created by spirits distributor S.C. Herbst, who named the bourbon after John E. Fitzgerald—a Treasury agent who used his warehouse keys to thief from the finest whiskey barrels. During Prohibition, the brand was acquired by Julian "Pappy" Van Winkle, who moved production to the legendary Stitzel-Weller Distillery and replaced the traditional rye grain with wheat to pioneer a softer, sweeter style of bourbon. After dominating the mid-century market as a symbol of hospitality, the brand fell on hard times. A recent return from obscurity has been crowned by the launch of a new signature expression - the 7 Year Bottled-in-Bond, complete with bottles reminiscent of historic decanters. This expression has an exceptional mouthfeel and classic profile, highlighting a nose of honey and summer fruits that transitions into a rich palate of brown sugar, cherry and warm baking spices.
Using refined sugar in the 19th century would have been a very posh way to make a cocktail, so most bars and saloons at the time would have used one with a heavy molasses component, something like the new demerara syrup made by Angostura. It delivers a rich, full-bodied texture with distinct flavor notes of toasted molasses, warm caramel, and a subtle hint of smoke.
The Sirene China Calisaia Bitters serves as a direct mirror to 19th-century "Stomach Bitters," an era when cocktail flavorings sat firmly at the intersection of medicine and mixology. During the 1800s, hand-selected South American cinchona bark—historically known as China (KEEN-uh) or Jesuit's Bark—was the most famous medicinal botanical in the world, utilized globally to combat malaria and digestive ailments. A bartender from that period would have instantly recognized the smoky, highly tannic, and deep red profile of this bitter, making it a perfect tool for recreating an authentic, historically accurate 19th-century Old Fashioned.
By marrying the soft profile of the Old Fitzgerald 7-Year-Old—a bourbon with deep roots in the Stitzel-Weller tradition—with the rich, molasses-heavy weight of demerara syrup and the deep medicinal tannins of Sirene China Calisaia Bitters, one effectively bridges the era of the 1806 morning elixir with the precision of today’s craft renaissance, returning the cocktail to its clean, spirit-driven 19th-century foundation. Cheers!
