Friday, September 8, 2017

Squid Mixes: Manhattan

via my wife
At this point, I would probably choose the Manhattan as my favorite cocktail.  Whiskey, in general, is my preferred liquor and the other ingredients enhance the flavor without overpowering.  The Angostura bitters, especially, add a pleasant cinnamon accent.  Plus, it's pretty with the red cherry at the bottom of the glass.  My recipe came from The New York Bartender's Guide: rye and sweet vermouth in 3:1 ratio with a dash of bitters.

The Manhattan was most certainly invented in New York, one of numerous cocktails named for the city's five boroughs.  Accounts date its creation as far back as the 1860s.  Several variations exist, some varying the base liquor, others switching to dry vermouth, still more toying around with different bitters.  The most intriguing to me is the Fourth Regiment which includes dashes of orange, celery and Peychaud's bitters.

20 comments:

  1. Sounds and looks wonderful. I would love to try it but I can't drink. BooHoo !
    Extra lovely photo today with your pretty kitty !

    cheers, parsnip

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cats are reluctant models, as I would imagine you have found as well. The Squirt's constant need for affirmation can occasionally be used to advantage.

      Delete
  2. I would definitely try this given a chance! Sounds yum!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sometimes, I don't understand the naming of drinks. I mean, if you change the BASE liquor, how can it be the same drink?
    Unfortunately, I don't think I care enough to actually do the research to find out.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Any change in ingredients usually means a name change, too.

      Delete
  4. My mom and stepfather drank Manhattans all the time. They used to buy a mix of sweet and dry vermouth, which I guess makes it a "perfect" Manhattan. Scotch in place of rye makes it a Rob Roy. Not sure what it's called if you use bourbon instead of rye, but that's the way they made them.

    I learned how to make them for Mom when I was twelve. An integral part of my eduction.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. From what I can see in my admittedly limited research, there's genuine debate as to whether rye, bourbon or Canadian whiskey is the proper base for a Manhattan. Canadian is usually rye anyway, though frequently blended.

      Delete
  5. I'll take Manhatten and the....can't remember the rest that I heard Mickey Rooney sing in a biopic he made playing Hart..I think.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'll take Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island too, it's lovely going through the zoo
      It's very fancy on old Delaney Street, you know.
      The subway charms us so, when balmy breezes blow to and fro.
      And tell me what street compares with Mott street in July,
      Sweet push carts gently gliding by
      The great big city's a wondrous toy, just made for a girl and boy.
      I'll turn Manhattan into an isle of joy.
      I'll go to Greenwich, where modern men itch to be free.
      And Bowling Green you'll see with me.
      We'll bathe at Brighton, the fish you'll frighten
      When you're in your bathing suit so thin, will make shellfish grin fin to fin.
      I'd like to take a sail on Jamaica Bay with you, the fair Canarsies Lake we'll view
      The city's bustle cannot destroy the dreams of a girl and boy,
      I'll turn Manhattan into an isle of joy.

      Delete
  6. I'm not really into drinks but this got me curious.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. No alcohol at all or do you stick to wine and/or beer?

      Delete
  7. This sounds good to me. Haven't tried one since I was in my early 20s. :)
    ~Jess

    ReplyDelete
  8. I tend to drink American whiskey, and now I'm curious about the "rye" part of it. The brand I buy doesn't specify "rye" and I'm not a fan of rye, the grain or the bread, so how do I know if I'll like this variant? I'm willing to try it fo sho, but I want to know I won't hate it, first. Does rye have a sharper flavor than regular whiskey?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mm, rye, so lovely...

      Okay, I haven't done enough tasting to pretend that I have a sophisticated answer to that one. But I took a quick whiff of the American whiskey bottles we have on hand. The Seagrams 7, a blended whiskey, was the only one I might describe as sharp. Our preferred rye, Old Overholt, was the sweetest of the three. If you're imagining it would taste like rye bread, which I don't care for either, it doesn't. Our bourbon, JB Black, is softer somehow.

      Delete