Manhattan
The Manhattan is one of the great classics of stirred cocktails. It is named after one of the famous Burroughs of New York City. There are 5 cocktails named for each borough, but the Manhattan alone has stood the test of time.
Manhattans are the lower maintenance, “dark side” of the Martini. Although the Martini, and the Manhattan are structurally the same drink, this cocktail is significantly clearer cut than overly complicated Martini. It is curious that despite our conversation about the importance of vermouth in the martini, it is extremely rare that a Manhattan drinker will kibitz over the vermouth in their cocktail (Perhaps because 007 kept his nose out this one). I have never encountered the kind of hysteria over vermouth in a Manhattan as is common place with the Martini. Again, this drink is one where vermouth is integral to the finished product.
Basic Manahttan Recipe:
2oz American Whiskey (bourbon or Rye)
1oz Sweet Vermouth
2-4 Dashes Angostura bitters
It is stirred. As covered in Ep 1, the goal of spirit forward cocktails is to achieve the perfect texture/cohesion of flavors through dilution. Tasting your way through with the Arc of Dilution will help to achieve the perfect balance. It can be served up or on the rocks and may be garnished with a cherry (for fun), an appropriate aromatic garnish, or simply no garnish. A cherry, although it has no functional reason for being in the drink is considered the most iconic garnish and from experience, is expected by most guests.
In mechanical terms, a Manhattan is:
2oz strong
1oz sweet fortified
2-4 dashes bitter
The reason for 2-4 dashes of bitters, as the brilliant/legendary Chef Rudy would say (in a thick German accent), “Depend on what you want to do.” One must use one’s palate and feeling to make appropriate decisions. For Example, Dolin Rouge and Carpano Antica are both very famous sweet vermouths. Dolin is French, where vermouths are famously light and flowery in character; whereas Antica is Italian (the land of Amaro) and known for being a bolder and more bitter. Therefore, a Manhattan with Dolin Rouge would need 4 dashes of bitters, but a Manhattan with Antica only needs two.
Jessica Jelly. Happenin’, Manhattan, Jellista.
Understanding how these parts interact helps us to create a variety of balanced cocktails on this tree. For Example, the classic Bobby Burns is a type of Manhattan. The classic recipe uses 1oz component of sweet but breaks it down into .75oz sweet vermouth and .25 Benedictine. In a Vieux Carre the strong is split between cognac and rye, the bitters are split between Angostura and Peychaud’s, and the sweet is also broken into .75 sweet vermouth and .25 Benedictine. That’s 6 ingredients, but still mechanically a Manhattan.
Manhattan Lingo:
50/50 – equal parts Strong and Sweet, i.e. 1.5oz whiskey & 1.5oz sweet vermouth
Perfect – Splitting the sweet with equal Parts Dry and Sweet Vermouth, i.e. .5oz each of Dry vermouth and Sweet. These are usually given an aromatic lemon twist garnish
Dry - Sub Dry Vermouth, usually lemon twist
Inverted – 2oz Sweet and 1oz Strong
Cheers!
<3 J