Pre-bottled cocktails have always felt somewhat gimmicky and totally against the current movement of at-home master mixologists. With bars on seemingly never ending hiatus, gone are the days of snidely side mouthing post sip, “I can make it better at home.” Now, you have to simply put up or shut up, proving to yourself and possibly family (or even your poor too-kind neighbors) that you truly are a craft cocktail wiz. But what if you’re not? And even if you do think you mix up the best so-and-so or whatsamahoozit, there’s a very good chance you’re still not making your Old Fashioned as well as Ohio’s Watershed Distillery.
Made from Bourbon, bitters, sugar, and cherry juice, the Columbus-based distillery keeps the ingredients simple and the proof high (usually a good choice for everything in the spirits realm). Watershed uses their own Bourbon, which turns out to be pretty darn good, the cherry juice is also made in house and they use raw sugar. Top that off with the bottle’s 35% ABV, and you have something special that can be served over ice without losing its fire.
The Watershed Distillery Bottled Old Fashioned pours a stiff cocktail, a true rarity in the pre-bottled/canned world, and it’s probably better than the one served at your local. In even better news, you can now actually get one of these bottles shipped to you if you live in America and aren’t in a state with particularly draconian liquor laws (sorry Utah, Mississippi, Alabama, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and Delaware, you’re s*** out of luck).
Ohio, Georgia, Michigan, and Florida residents have it easiest, just head over to Watershed’s official website for more details. If you don’t happen to be in one of those four states, simply head over to Seelbach’s or Wood’s Wholesale Wine and place an order. The Watershed Bottled Old Fashioned comes in 375ml, 750ml, or 1.75L sizes.
good time of year for an Old Fashioned with the Kentucky Derby and Masters coming up — fun article — nice to know it is good and strong rather than watered down with a canned taste.