A 'Perfect' Maple Manhattan.
Rich & balanced, this Manhattan is going to get you through the cold months.
I’m on my w
ay to New Orleans right now on what feels like the most unexpectedly chaotic morning I’ve seen at LaGuardia Airport in a while. It’s not that there are a ton of people, I guess, but it seems every parent with multiple children, ski equipment and 3 dogs has decided to line up at the Sky Priority desk this morning. But before 6:30am? What?! I guess people are planning to do way more than I am over Christmas. I’m planning to eat and drink. A lot. Also, there is no priority line at security, only the K9 unit. Ah, Merry Christmas from TSA. I need French 75 and a beignet. Hopefully it’s already cocktail time by the time you are reading this.
Let’s start by acknowledging the elephant in the room: I have been away. I know this. I’m sorry. The temperature in NYC has plummeted. It’s in the teens. Single digits when you add the wind chill. I’m staying inside until tax day when I get back home. As for a cocktails this time of year, we need ‘stick-to your-ribs’ types of pours. We need ‘winter’ things. Ah yes, I know. Deck the halls. My Perfect Maple Manhattan.
So….Whenever you hear the term, ‘perfect,’ it applies generally to a cocktail in the martini family that balances the drink with both sweet and dry vermouths. A Manhattan, after all, is a martini, right? It is a base spirit that is accented by an aromatized or fortified wine*. (That is the vermouth). Martini is gin or vodka with wine. Manhattan is American whiskey, bourbon or rye, with wine. Now, the difference between a normal wine and an aromatized or fortified wine is that the latter normally come in at a higher alcohol content. That is generally somewhere between 16-20% ABV, give or take. (Dry vermouths have less and are less sweet, obviously). Sweet vermouth and dry are both aromatized wines. They are wines spiced with fruit, herbs, botanicals, etc. With a Manhattan, you season with cocktail bitters, typically aromatic.
*Side note for the nerds: A fortified wine differs from an aromatized wine in that there is normally a grain or neutral spirit added to it, keeping it on the higher end of the ABV, closer to that 17-20%-ish level. When you start seeing more modern type Manhattan-riff cocktails, you start to notice that bartenders and mixologists will depart from the classic vermouths in favor of other things. Madeira, sherry, Marsala; these are all cool vermouth stand-ins you’ll start to notice in cocktails as you become a better, cooler, and more grown up drinker.
The term ‘perfect’ almost always refers to a Manhattan as a way to control the sweetness in the drink. HOWEVER, sweet gin Manhattans do exist. As a matter of fact, one of the great examples of this is the ‘Martinez’ cocktail. (This is another newsletter).
Okay, so, ‘perfect.’ Ta da. You learned a new term. Knowing the term gets more fun as you start seeing more and more specialty cocktail menus over time. The style exists in a lot of original cocktails with original names. Bartenders like to be in control of flavors. Control the sweetness and you control the balance in a spirit forward drink. You can play with a variety of brown spirits as the base, then mix up the seasoning (the bitters), and play with a variety of wines (aromatized or fortified), as well as accents of liqueurs. It’s fun, fun game.
Without further ado, since it’s winter, go to your pantry, grab your maple syrup and let’s build a Manhattan.
PERFECT MAPLE MANHATTAN
Perfect Maple Manhattan
-2 dashes Angostura bitters
-2oz bourbon whiskey
-.5oz rye whiskey
-.33oz maple syrup
-.25oz sweet vermouth
-.25 dry vermouth
Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass
Add ice
Stir
Serve on the rocks on a chilled low ball
Garnish an expressed orange peel
I got a great question on Instagram about why I used a blend of bourbon and rye whiskey. I’m a big fan of splitting spirits in cocktails to control the overall character of the drink. Sweetness, yes, but also mouthfeel. In this case, bourbon is heavier in corn and will skew very sweet combined with maple and sweet vermouth. To keep things from being too rich, rye adds spice and helps with the brine of the dry vermouth to cut through the sweetness, thin out the drink, and add a bit of a smoothness to the sip.
This drinks satisfies everyone. Manhattan folks. Old Fashioned folks. It’s great for cocktail hour, pre or post dinner, and even works as a substitute for dessert. Enjoy it.
Justin