Bitters, Vermouth, and Liqueurs

Featured Cocktail: The Manhattan

This episode’s featured cocktail is the Manhattan, and you’ll see why that makes sense when my guest and I use it as a sort of litmus test for comparing different bitters and vermouths.

Many of you have encountered this drink before, and if there were a cocktail version of Mt. Rushmore, the Manhattan would definitely be carved up there, right beside the Old Fashioned and the Martini.

Manhattans are classy, versatile, and timeless. You can use any number of whiskeys, vermouths, and bitters to achieve slight variations on the same recipe, and for me that’s one of the great joys of bartending.

The ancient Greek thinker Heraclitus said famously that you can’t step in the same river twice, and I think the Manhattan certainly proves that rule with the sheer number of possible ingredient variations available in today’s market.

How do you make one? Easy.

• 2 oz American Whiskey (Rye is traditional, but Bourbon is great too)
• 1 oz Sweet Vermouth
• Several Dashes Orange Bitters

Combine all these ingredients in a mixing pint with ice and stir until chilled. Then strain into a stemmed cocktail glass and garnish with an expressed orange peel.

We’ll talk more about the Manhattan in the show, but I wanted to give you the chance to make yourself one if you’re listening to this at home and aren’t planning on driving or operating any heavy machinery.