Fri 16 Mar 2007
How to Make a Classic Manhattan
Posted by anaglyph under Food & Drink, Geek, Philosophy, Science
[18] Comments
•2 oz rye whisky
•1 oz sweet red Vermouth
•A good dash of Angostura bitters
Stir or shake quickly ((Stirring is preferred)) over ice, pour off and garnish with a Maraschino cherry.
Some people prefer a twist of lemon instead of a cherry. Some people prefer bourbon instead of rye. Some people omit the bitters. All these things make for a lesser Manhattan.
Save the cherry until last and eat it, or give it to the sweetest girl in the room.
18 Responses to “ How to Make a Classic Manhattan ”
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[…] know that there are those of you out there who read my post on how to make a classic Manhattan and thought ‘It’ll be a slow day in Valhalla before you catch me drinking one of those […]
Why do we have imperial measurements in this recipe, Reverend? (Of course, Johnny insists that Janette uses imperials at all times!)
yum, though.
Oh I dunno. Call it a triumph of Poetry over Reason. Somehow, if feels that if you used millilitres it would come out tasting more like a chemistry experiment.
If you drink one in Manhattan, does it taste even better?
Of course.
When I drink a Cosmopolitan, I try to act all, er … sophisticated.
We don’t hold with these fancy-schmancy mixed drinkies. Just give us two fingers of Ardbeg each and leave the bottle.
I’m sad because I must wait nine months before I can drink another Red-Nosed Reindeer.
I’ve never had a Manhattan. Enjoy yours!!
A good Manhatten is a drink fit for the gods, but nobody makes it with enough vermouth nowadays. They’re all petrified of the carbs, the wussies.
A Manhatten is a relatively masculine drink in my opinion, although women do drink it (including me). To me, it’s very Ocean’s 11, very Rat Pack, very Vegas, baby! The worst one I ever had was at a gourmet pizza joint where the bartender was incredibly proud of his “dry Manhatten” with a slice of lime. Godawful, and lukewarm.
raincoaster: You’re welcome in my joint anytime baby!
A ‘dry’ Manhattan is an abomination. To make it dry is not to understand the concept. It’s NOT a martini!
And you Manhattan virgins, lest you think it’s a ‘sweet’ drink like one of those candy cocktails with risible risqué names, it’s not. It’s a beautiful balance of mildly sweet, spicy and bracing. It’s not a drink for teenagers.
I’ve had Manhattans in many famous bars around the world. Periyali, a Greek restaurant in New York made the best one I’ve ever had commercially. It was followed closely by one made with panache by the bartender at the Algonquin. I’ve never had a good Manhattan in a bar in Sydney – no-one knows how to do it. They invariably use bourbon instead of rye.
Your health!
A Dry Manhattan was made famous by Frank Sinatra and the “Rat Pack” ( Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr., Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop).
It is a masculine version of the more sweet original version.
¾ oz. Dry Vermouth
1½ oz. Rye Whisky
1 dash of Bitters (Angostura)
How to make it: Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Serve with an olive or lemon twist (peel).
This is one of those drinks that only guys with real class could truly understand. Anyone who disagrees can take it up with the fellas from the Rat Pack.
L.R.: Thanks for stopping by The Cow!
Well, I don’t aim to get into any fisticuffs with Ol’ Blue Eyes & his mates (especially his other mates), but my view is that if you want a drink of real traditional class you stick with the classic Martini.
Even though the original Manhattan is a soupçon sweet, it cannot be in anyway considered a ‘sweet’ cocktail, being as it is so far removed from the liquid candy abominations that pass for cocktails these days. And besides, I always preferred the less jejune company of James Stewart and Cole Porter to the brashness of the Rat Pack.
Each to his own.
Manhattans are always 4-1 with a dash of bitters of course. Of late I have preferred mine over rocks. Use the best rye you can afford, and measure because most of us are not professional bartenders.
Yo!
guess what I’m about to drink tonight..Thanks!
You know, I’ve not had a Manhattan for ages because I never really liked them. However I suspect my husband was making more of a dry manhattan than a “real” one. I shall be advising him of the correct way!
Tell me, ‘Stop Bedwetting’, is someone paying you well to sit at your computer and spam blogs? I hope so, because it seems like a job on par with cleaning out bedpans or hosing down pub steps after a late night.
Your link pointed somewhere useless, so I fixed it (as I also did for ‘locksmiths Manhattan’)