This is the exact recipe that I was taught and made and taught to others for a decade and is still what most of the population expects of an old fashioned. The common Old Fashioned calls for sugar crystals to be muddled into the cherry and the orange with the whiskey simply poured over the top and ice added. When I was coming up, if someone ordered an Old Fashioned with no preference that meant Seagrams 7 and a Manhattan with no preference meant Seagrams VO. They are not cool in the whiskey bars but I think they are just as relevant as they ever were by the quality in the bottle.
Ingredients
2 oz Whiskey (Seagrams 7 is cost effective and still scores highly in my blind tastings.)
1/4 oz Simple Syrup
2 dashes Angostura Bitters
1 Pitted Cherry
1 Slice of Orange
Garnish
Slice of Orange and Cherry.
Glassware
12 oz old fashioned glass
Assembly
Place orange and cherry at the bottom of old fashioned glass and muddle vigorously. Add Syrup, Bitters, and muddle again. Add Whiskey and ice and give a quick stir with a bar spoon.
Suggestions
The sugar is really there to balance out the alcoholic bite. If the drink comes off too sweet adjust with bitters.