Enjoyed: Saturday, September 25, 2021

Listed on the menu: Yes, as Old Fashioned. 

Ingredients: Seagram’s 7 blended whiskey, muddled quarter of an orange, whole maraschino cherry, sugar, bitters, soda. The orange flavor was prominent, the cherry flavor was not.

The occasion: Husband and I were on a getaway weekend in the Alleghany Highlands. We spent several hours at Douthat State Park, and then drove along some scenic byways to Hot Springs, Virginia, for a brewery stop, then checked into a lovely inn in Covington. The host recommended this restaurant, a local favorite. We noticed several families were there to celebrate special occasions. 

My rating: *** out of 5. The chef was also acting as bartender that evening due to a staff shortage–a ubiquitous problem in the service industry–so I didn’t want to impose and ask further questions about my drink! The restaurant was the kind of steakhouse we often patronized with our parents–generous cuts of red meat, shrimp cocktails, Oysters Rockefeller, baked potatoes, vegetables drowning in butter, hot rolls, and so on. Delicious, stick-to-your-ribs food, with no room for fancy plating and exotic spices. The bar menu was exactly as we expected, too, with choices like Manhattans, Martinis, Screwdrivers, and Rob Roys. My Old Fashioned was probably identical to an Old Fashioned that would have been served to my dad in 1968 or so, complete with the Seagram’s and the maraschino cherry.

Final thoughts: At $8, this was the least expensive Old Fashioned, I believe, in all my travels so far. Good value, yes, but I don’t mind paying more to get a craft bourbon and a Luxardo cherry.

Enjoyed: Sunday, September 6, 2021

Listed on the menu: Yes, as Old Fashioned (with choice of Bare Knuckles Whiskeys).

Ingredients: Straight Rye Whiskey (as bartender recommended), muddled orange slice, muddled maraschino cherry, sugar cube, barrel-aged bitters.

The occasion: Husband and I had no plans for this Sunday before Labor Day, so we drove to Manassas to again visit Gainfully Employed Son 2.0. The mid-afternoon brought drizzle, so we opted for an indoor activity, i.e. a visit to KO Distilling. Husband chose a flight of whiskeys–which he enjoyed– instead of a cocktail. The staff was very friendly and eager to chat with us.

My rating: ** out of 5. The rye was undoubtedly well-crafted, but the remaining ingredients, although traditional for an Old Fashioned, were more of a distraction than an enhancement. My first taste of the cocktail was like a burst of Red Hot candy. The red color of the drink also confused me. Did the bartender add Fireball to my drink? Yes, rye should have a sharpness, but why was I tasting cinnamon so strongly? I was hoping for more subtlety and sophistication in both presentation and taste.

Final thoughts: Son’s cocktail (a spin on a Sazerac) was also disappointing. He remarked that the distillery’s selection of cocktails was too large. Indeed, the menu was several pages long. “If you’re going to make cocktails, offer a small amount of choices but learn to make each one well every time,” he remarked.