www.wine-girl.net
    Home   |   Archives   |   Calendar   |   Wine & Food Pairing   |   Wine Trails
Jan 27

Cocktails: The Perfect Manhattan

In the class we took from Josh Durr, he made us each a Manhattan. Now, the Manhattan is my favorite cocktail, but I’ve had a lot of horrible versions, both locally and when we travel. In Vancouver, I ordered a Manhattan and had the worst drink of my life – and I’m still not sure what all he put in it. At several local bars, the bourbon and vermouth are often low-end, the drink is filled with floating ice chips, and bitters aren’t even added. Sigh.

So Josh’s Manhattan was a breath of fresh air for me – it was something out of the stylized Mad Men. Because of this class, I’m now very specific with my Manhattan order: “Four Roses or Woodford Manhattan, up, and stirred please.”

  • 1 1/2 oz Four Roses Bourbon
  • 1/2 oz Carpano Antica Vermouth
  • Dashes of Angostura bitters (or home made)

Stir with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Sounds easy, right? Josh commented that you should always use high-quality bourbon, vermouth, and bitters. He goes so far as to make his own tinctures, including bitters, but we aren’t all so dedicated. An interesting tip is that you can replace the vermouth with Elderflower liqueur for a twist on the classic Manhattan.

When you stir the Manhattan, consistently and quietly stir to chill down the drink. Josh recommended making the drink in a pint glass and pouring it out through a double-strainer.

It was good folks. Really really good.

Photo from Flickr user ginsnob
via Creative Commons

Post to Twitter

Share on FacebookEmail This
Copyright Creative Commons by-nc-nd My Wine Education.
Posted by Michelle at 8:00 am in Cocktails | Permalink | Comments (4)

4 Responses to “Cocktails: The Perfect Manhattan”

  1. asrgtwert says:

    a true manhattan is made with canadian whisky, not bourbon.

  2. The Chief says:

    Sorry, but the true manhattan IS made with bourbon. Here’s another quality recipe. Maker’s Mark with Noilly Prat vermouth and Fee Brothers bitters (orange or cherry flavored recommended). Cheers!

  3. Tom Ufer says:

    I enjoy my Manhattans with rye. Either way, it is one of my favorite cocktails.

Leave a Reply

Wine-Girl.net Rating Scale

Recent Posts

Categories

Wine Competitions Wine Book Club (WBC) Weblogs Wine Judging Readings Whiskey Watch Wine Clubs Wine Glossary Books Games Repost WBW #65 RIP Florida Wine Maps Web/Tech Contests Meet the Winemaker TasteCamp Holiday Uncategorized Marketing Drink Pink! (BCRF) Recipes Television Recession Wine Legislation Current Affairs Spirits History Mad Men Monday Photos Wine Shop Wednesday Scotch & Whiskey Disney Food and Wine Pairings Wine Tech Food and Drink Pop Culture Guest Writers Entertainment Charity Benefits Wine Misc Beer Wine Blogs Dinner and Drinks Cocktails Knowledge Special Events Life Beer-Guy.net News Local Wineries WBW Wine Shops Wine Notes Restaurants Travel Wine Events Wineries Weekly Cincinnati Wine Events Local Tastings Cincinnati

Links That Make Us Happy

Sponsors


sponsors

In-Home Tastings

Hosting a private party? Let Wine-Girl.net help! Click here for information on in-home tastings for every occasion.

WineGirl on Facebook

Krystal Pepper Memorial Scholarship Fund

Raising money for a scholarship fund in memory of Michelle's little sister who passed away in 2007Click here for information on the Krystal Pepper Memorial Scholarship Fund.

Winner, Best Cincinnati Weblog 2007

Where The Locals Eat featured blog

Alltop, all the cool kids (and me)