Old Fashioned¹

Glassware: Old Fashioned (Thick Rocks Glass)
Mixing Method: Build in Glass

This is a BASE Recipe
Ingredients:
1 Barspoon of Sugar² (or 1/4 oz Simple Syrup)
2 Dashes of Angustora Bitters
1 1/2 oz. Rye or Bourbon Whiskey (or Brandy in some parts of the USA)

Garnish: A Luxardo Cherry and a Wide Orange Peel to express the oil over the drink, oil the rim of the glass, and then drape it in.  

IN GENERAL What makes the difference between a Manhattan and an old fashioned is that Old Fashioneds are made with Bourbon or Rye Whiskey, Angostura Bitters and sugar (or simple syrup.) and the key difference between the two (the Old Fashioned and the Manhattan) is the sweetener. The Manhattan uses Sweet Vermouth (an aromatized fortified wine) and the Old Fashioned uses plain sugar.
 
Copyright © Up or on the Rocks – Old Fashioned Cocktail

1. The Old-Fashioned: The Story of the World’s First Classic Cocktail, with Recipes and Lore, by Robert Simonson. Why am I putting a book here? Because no matter what recipe I put here, some “expert” will come along and say “Ah HA! David doesn’t know what he’s doing – THAT’S not the way to make an Old Fashioned!”… So, I’m putting one of my recipes here, and leaving it to you to look deeper if you wish. This book is a complete history of one of the world’s most iconic cocktails–now the poster child of the modern cocktail revival–with fifty recipes for classic variations as well as contemporary updates. No single cocktail is as iconic, as beloved, or as discussed and fought-over as the Old-Fashioned. Its formula is simple: just whiskey, bitters, sugar, and ice. But how you combine those ingredients—in what proportion, using which brands, and with what kind of garnish—is the subject of much impassioned debate.[↩]
2. Sugar or Simple Syrup. Some bartenders spritz a small splash of Club Soda to the sugar, then muddle it wet so it’ll dissolve into the Whiskey better. Club Soda imparts zero flavor, and because it’s muddled with the sugar, there are no bubbles left once the drink is created. It’s up to you. A lot of bartenders gasp in horror when they hear about adding a splash of Club Soda. You can also use a dash of Rye or Bourbon, but some improperly made muddlers are wood that is lacquered and my concern with that is that the alcohol could dissolve some lacquer into the drink. NOTE: Properly made wooden muddlers are perfectly safe as long as they’re rinsed and given a quick drying. Don’t lay them down in puddles or in glasses or cups full of water.[↩]