Miele Old Fashion Recipe

Combine 3 tablespoons honey and 3 tablespoons hot water in a small jar. Stir until honey is fully dissolved.

Add 1/8 teaspoon smoked salt or a single drop of liquid smoke, stir and taste. Adjust to balance subtle smoke with sweetness; you want a whisper of smoke. Cool and refrigerate up to 2 weeks.

Chill glass

Place an old-fashioned glass in the freezer for a few minutes or fill with ice water while you assemble ingredients to chill the glass.

Build and stir

In a mixing glass or small jug, add 2 oz rye whiskey, 1/4 oz sweet fortified wine or amaro (dolin rouge or Averna), 1/4 oz demerara syrup, 1/4 oz smoked honey syrup (optional), 3 dashes Angostura bitters and 1 dash orange bitters. Fill the mixing glass with cold ice (about 1 cup).

Using a bar spoon, stir the mixture briskly for 20–30 seconds (about 20–30 turns) until the outside of the mixing glass is very cold and the dilution is about 20–25% (you should feel slight chill and slight dilution).

Prepare serving glass

Discard ice water from the chilled old-fashioned glass if used. Add one large ice sphere or large clear cube to the glass.

Strain the stirred cocktail over the large ice into the chilled glass using a Hawthorne or julep strainer.

Express and garnish

Express the oils from the orange peel over the drink by holding peel skin-side down and giving a firm twist about 2–3 inches above the glass. Run the peel around the rim, then drop it into the drink as garnish.

Serve immediately and enjoy. Sip slowly to appreciate the balance of spice from rye, the sweet-bitter note from vermouth/amaro, and the subtle smoked honey.