Tempted to think of this is as the Manhattan to have when you’ve only got rye to hand. For me the bittersweet/dry profile was pretty much identical to a Manhattan. Used Woodford reserve rye this evening, Bitter Truth aromatic bitters, de Kuyper apricot. Absolutely delicious.

Exceptional! Not heard of rainwater Madeira so I assume as uncommon in Australia as in uk. I subbed Lustau solera cream Sherry which is more medium sweet. Had Glenmorangie Lasanta Sherry finished for the scotch which hopefully pushed it in the intended direction. Very tasty indeed and my imagination easily conjured up the absent garnish! Already planning how to serve to guests!

Since we are getting into the finer details of a Dry Martini here, another question is; what is the optimal stirring time?

I prefer Tanqueray No.Ten gin with Cinzano 1757 Extra Dry Vermouth:
https://www.tanqueray.com/en-us/recipes/tanqueray-no-ten-gin-martini#method

Also, if stirring 2 drinks instead of one, does the stirring time need to be doubled in order to get the same amount of dilution and chilling?

Made for the first time last night using Indian jaisalamer gin and again tonight using Gin Mare. Loved both versions. Followed the ‘recipe’ using about 3 mls of sugar syrup. I liked the Spring Feeling a lot more than The LastWord. I have found a new favourite. Thank you😃

I made this using the x2 quantities. I used 25 ml of Agave, and wow, what a drink! We loved it.

This one stands up well to the ice-melt and the three base spirits invite experimentation, ten year old tawny provides some unique age flavours not found in the liquors. This time I used Basil Hayden (kind of mild), Sazerac (no shortage of flavor), Barbancourt five star rhum (complemented the bourbon) might just do this again as Mr. Pichler-Ernst suggests in a coupe without ice. Cheers!

Made this again, but added a small 151 Rum float. Pulls out the rum and spice flavours more. Would recommend if you do not mind a spirit forward cocktail.

Definitely needs dilution and then to sit a little bit. Actually enjoyed it more after it warmed up some. A good alternative to a sweet Manhattan. Might be interesting to do this again with a rye instead of bourbon.

Great cocktail. Honestly, it has something to please every palette: a gentle sweet smokiness, cut through with citrus and lingering spicy, herbal notes. Delicious and multi faceted.

A really delicious cocktail and deceptively strong as the cinnamon syrup and Falernum mask the rums. I used Appleton 8 as the main base to make it more Jamaican rather than Cuban, and I think the slight funk of the Appleton really complemented the Wray and Nephew.

As others have mentioned, the cinnamon syrup is quite present so I might dial it down to 7.5 ml next time to see if that tones it down a bit.

60 ml Old Duff Single Malt
60 ml sweet vermouth
7.5 ml dry vermouth
5 ml Cointreau
1 dash angostura bitters
Orange twist

Spectacular!!!!

This is a grown-up drink :)

Very nice! I love maraschino, this is one cocktail that takes it close to the forefront.

I agree with the comment of “what is it trying to say?”. It wasn’t bad, good balance, but so vague… I added .25oz yuzu curaçao and it didn’t necessarily make it *better*, but it gave it a purpose and made it more worth drinking to my palate.

A great way of showcasing a craft vermouth (I can highly recommend Pembrokeshire's Still Wild Sweet Rosso Vermouth for example) in which case serve straight up to appreciate it at it's best

So true with stirred! This one surprised me, since its drier than sounds - thanks to the small amount of juice & liqueurs and the huge amount of Martini-Mix, and the stirring technique. Definitely worth the try.

Straining rather than staring.

Strega forward. I loved this drink, but did not add any ice after shaking and staring as dilute enough already with the grapefruit juice. Lovely late afternoon / early evening drink before the grown up drinks.

Agreed. I've added a link above.

Classy Long Island

Many thanks for sharing your local knowledge. I've added this above.

A "Marianito" here in Bilbao is just a smaller sized vermouth. Most people order that instead of a" Vermouth". This "prepared" version is what we call a Marianito Preparado.. Every bar has their own recipe, but it's quite Vermouth-forward: something like 7 parts Martini - 2 parts Campari - 1 part Gin. Difford's recipe could be my favorite though, more Negroni-styled 😎

A 5 star for us

We had the good fortune to spend a delightful afternoon at the Bellas Artes location of La Ferneteria in 2025. This is one of the cocktails that we tried, so I was thrilled to stumble across it here while looking for a way to use up a half bottle of Malbec!

Very refreshing with a novel mix of flavors. Good introduction to fernet for the uninitiated.

Please note that while soda water is on the list of ingredients, the instructions indicate tonic water, which is how it was served at La Ferneteria.

Agreed. Thanks. I've added an instruction to serve with a straw.