Chapter Text
“Hey there.” Doppel called as he looked over to you, looking up from the glass he was cleaning. “Come for the lesson? No other reason to be stickin’ around at this hour.” He smiled a little, setting aside the glass.
You nodded, sitting down at the barstool in front of him. “Good, good.” He nodded, leaning down beneath the counter. You heard the soft clinks of glass as he pulled up a couple of bottles, a rocks glass, and a perfectly clear ice cube. Not magic, you noticed. You asked him where he got it from.
“Made it myself. We’re gonna be covering that in a different lesson though.” He looked proud, pushing aside the other bottles for now as he set the rocks glass in front of you, then used a pair of tongs to set the ice cube in. It practically took up the whole glass.
“We’re gonna be makin’ an old fashioned today. One of the most popular cocktails out there, and for good reason, I think.” He explained, taking a barspoon and starting to stir the ice. Even though it was on its own, which you didn’t quite understand.
Doppel took notice of your expression. “Oh, this? Method of cooling the glass. A cooled glass makes any drink taste better, and while some just put their glass with their ice, I learned to do it with an ice cube. Takes longer, but I think the craftsmanship makes up for it.” He kept stirring as he spoke.
Eventually, he paused to dump the excess water of the melting ice out. “I’ll just usually chill my glasses in the freezer on busy nights, but I think I can afford doing it my favorite way here. Anyway, see how it’s got that nice frost on it? That means it’s ready.” He took the ice cube out, setting it aside.
Doppel sifted through his supplies again, then got out a little jar, opening it and fishing through it with a claw until he pulled out a sugar cube, then dropped it into the glass. Then, he got out a small bottle with a strange cap on it, meant only to allow a few drops out at a time. “Bitters. Only a couple dashes are needed to flavor the whole drink. Four’s the standard, but it depends on the customer’s tastes, or your own.” Doppel explained, shaking the bottle four times as its droplets fell onto the sugar cube.
Then, he poured out a small amount of water, only enough to soak the cube through and then pool the slightest amount at the bottom of the glass. Doppel flipped his barspoon around, and used the teardrop-shaped end to crush the sugar, stirring it around. “This is called muddling. My barspoon’s got a muddler built in, but some have forks or nothing at all. You can use basically anything flat and blunt if you don’t have a muddler, though. Say, maybe a spoon or fork.”
Eventually, he decided the sugar was mixed well enough, and got out a whiskey bottle with a pour spout on top of it. “These things make sure my pours are even. Sometimes I’ll use a jigger, which is just a fancy word for measuring cup, but I prefer to count.” He said, counting silently to six as he tipped the bottle into the glass, lifting it up to make a show of the smooth pour. “Mine runs at about… three counts an ounce, and I want two ounces in here, so, six’s my number. All rhythm based.” He smiled, setting it aside.
“Most pour spouts run at around four, but mine’s a little bigger. Play around with yours, use water and get a feel for your pace.” He started to stir the sugar and whiskey together. “I like using honey bourbon myself. The bees really outdo themselves with alcohol, even if they don’t allow it in the hive. Something about ‘fermenting the honey’.”
Doppel then went to look around for a moment, before eventually grabbing a spicy berry and a small knife, and cutting off a nice peel. “Spicy berries add a nice zesty kick. Standard is orange berries, but using different fruit for that peel make drinks more special, I think.” He stated as he set the knife and rest of the berry aside, then took his peel and twisted it over the glass. You could see a light showering of oils come off from it as he did so. “Gotta release the oils.” He said, rubbing it over the rim of the glass as well.
He set the peel into the glass, then picked up the ice cube, lightly shook off the melting water, and set it in. “There we go. Old fashioned. Now, some tips about that ice, is you’ll need to let it sit outside the drink for a while so it doesn’t just crack. Drastic temperature changes just love to break up a nice thing of ice.” He said. “With clear ice like that, a bunch of cracks can just ruin how it looks.”
He got out a towel from beneath the table and started to wipe down the counter. “Another thing. Big pieces of ice melt slower than little ones, and melting’s important to a drink, since it helps to both cool and water down a drink. Smaller the ice, faster the cooling, faster the dilution. In this case, because we already chilled the glass, we can get away with a big piece. Besides, old fashions already want the whiskey to be the star of the show.”
You nodded, staring into the glass for a moment. Doppel pushed it closer with a claw. “Ey, how about you try it? Tell me what you think. Might be a little strong, but, if you’ve got any questions, just tell me.” He smiled warmly. “I’m happy to answer em.”