Wisconsin Old Fashioned appears as a signature dish in 2 United States cities. See each city's local variant and where to eat it.
Wisconsin brandy Old Fashioned · Madison
The Wisconsin Old Fashioned uses Korbel brandy instead of whiskey, muddled with a sugar cube, orange slice, maraschino cherry, Angostura bitters and a splash of Sprite or sour mix.
The Old Fashioned cocktail originated in Louisville in the 1880s with whiskey. Wisconsin's variant emerged in the 1880s when the state's German and Polish immigrant population preferred brandy, which had been imported in volume from Germany. Korbel Brandy from California, distributed cheaply across the Midwest, became the canonical pour; by the 1950s the Wisconsin Old Fashioned was a defining state cocktail. The Old Fashioned restaurant on North Pinckney took the cocktail's name as its identity in 2005, codifying the muddled-fruit-plus-brandy ritual into a tavern menu.
Where to eat in Madison:
- The Old Fashioned
- Tornado Steak House
- Settle Down Tavern
- Schwoegler's Park Towne Lanes
Wisconsin Old Fashioned · Milwaukee
The Wisconsin Old Fashioned uses Korbel brandy instead of whiskey, muddled with a sugar cube, orange slice, maraschino cherry and Angostura bitters.
The Old Fashioned cocktail originated in Louisville in the 1880s with whiskey. Wisconsin's variant emerged in the 1880s when the state's German and Polish immigrant population preferred brandy, which had been imported in volume from Germany. Korbel Brandy from California, distributed cheaply across the Midwest, became the canonical pour; by the 1950s the Wisconsin Old Fashioned was a defining state cocktail. Bryant's Cocktail Lounge in Lincoln Village has poured no-menu Old Fashioneds since 1938.
Where to eat in Milwaukee:
- Bryant's Cocktail Lounge
- Five O'Clock Steakhouse
- Boone and Crockett
- Hi Hat Lounge
- At Random