Ingredients
- 50ml rye whiskey
- 25ml sweet red vermouth
- Two dashes of Angostura Bitters
- One Morello cherry to garnish
About
The simplest drinks are always the best. And it’s usually the classics that are the easiest to make (consisting of just three ingredients), while also packing the biggest punch.
Traditionally made with rye whiskey and served in a coupette or martini glass, the Manhattan is a hard-hitting, yet flavourful cocktail.
It is simple to make, with the biggest impact on taste coming from the dilution and chill during the stir.
Talk suggests the drink started life in New York’s Manhattan Club in the early 1870s. Other accounts, however, claim the cocktail originates from the 1860s, where it was made by a bartender working in a Broadway bar.
Although we like to know where our cocktails come from, we’re not fans of getting involved in debate and speculation, so we’ll leave it at that.
An early recipe for the Manhattan cocktail can be found in William Schmidt’s 1891 book The Flowing Bowl, the recipe for which included absinthe.
If you’re not a fan of rye whiskey, or you don’t have any to hand, don’t worry as the recipe can be flexible when it comes to the type of whiskey.
Feel free to try it with bourbon or Canadian whiskey.
If you’re feeling adventurous, experiment with your bitters. We love a Manhattan made with chocolate and orange bitters. Likewise, you could opt for one or the other.
For those not too keen on the bold, punchy flavours of a Manhattan, try serving it in a rocks glass filled with ice and garnish with a orange citrus twist.
Method
Fill a mixing glass with ice
Rinse the ice with the bitters (add the bitters, stir and drain any excess)
Add the whiskey and vermouth
Stir for 30 seconds, until the right chill and dilution is achieved
Strain into a chilled coupette glass
Garnish with your cherry (just pop it in or skewer it on a toothpick)
