For you naysayers out there, adjust your vermouth with a bit of Bonal gentiane-quina... and choose Bittered Sling "Kensington" bitters--which has a hint of celery seed. Finished with a lemon twist, this Dry Manhattan sings:

DRY MANHATTAN w/ Rye Whiskey
(Coupe glass, chilled)
~ 0.50 Dry vermouth (Dolin)
~ 0.50 Bonal Gentiane-quina
~ 1-dsh Kensington bitters (Bittered Sling)
~ 2.00 Rye whiskey (James E. Pepper; Rittenhouse + Sagamore)
Stir. Strain in to a chilled coupe.
~ Swath of Lemon, expressed.

I learned this cocktail early in my career (c. 2008?) as being made with Canadian whisky, which I think often pales. My preferred recipe uses a mix of Canadian and Rittenhouse PA-style rye... with equal parts dry and amaretto... orange bitters (or bartender's choice), plus cherry and orange garnish. The proof (and dryness) of the whiskey makes a huge difference in how this drink plays.

Please also add chitonous insects and arachnids to your crustacean section. My recipe for the Corpse Reviver #2 is topped with toasted cricket bitters, for instance, from a company called Critter Bitters. I also occasionally work with scorpion-infused bitters and mezcal.

Please also add chitonous insects and arachnids to the shellfish category! My recipe for Corpse Reviver #2 is topped with toasted cricket bitters, for instance, from a company called Critter Bitters. I also sometimes work with scorpion-infused bitters and mezcal.

I didn't have Averna so I used Nonino with Rittenhouse Rye and... Chef's kiss. I'm going to try this with every remaining amaro I have.

Make sure you try it with Vigo amaro, from Philadelphia Distilling. (I prefer mine with a split of Vigo and Bonal gentiane-quina... and a base of Minor Case sherry-cask rye.)

Noilly Prat Ambré, the vermouth many favour for this cocktail, was first made in 1986. As reproduced above, the original 1884 recipe merely calls for "French vermouth."

Thanks for the clarification. I was under the impression that the goal for this recipe was to keep it "authentic" to the period/timeline, so far as we know it.

I really do appreciate the direction that you're taking this site, Simon! Thank you.

When was ambrato invented?

@Simon: I appreciate that you took the comment to task. I'm not sure there's a "right" way to make a Corn 'n' Oil. But logic would dictate that there needs to be some sort of visual appeal that corresponds with the name. Also, I love your choice of glassware for the photo: looks like an oil drum.

[Also, not sure why I'm just now getting notification about this post now. The site says that comments were submitted 30+ weeks ago. Might wanna look into that.]

By all means, I think multiple rums in a drink like this makes a superior, more nuanced drink! But you need something super-dark to top this. 15-mL will suffice if you don't feel comfortable using it as the base. And even Kraken works... provided you use a sweeter dark rum as the drink's base.

I've certainly read the Punch article to which you're referring. Tried making an exemplary Corn & Oil for years until settling on a float of Cruzan B-S or Kraken.

Seale does not MAKE "Blackstrap" rum.

Corn 'n' Oil requires that the rum be Black Strap rum. No other style other than black rum will do! This is a grave error in propagating correct cocktail information.

For as much as I can't stand flair--[please just make me a properly made, well-balanced drink and stop messing around]--you made a great video. Kudos!

You get lots of points for using the berry-basil jam--tradition, what?! But... that cocktail needs to be DRY-SHAKEN and poured over cracked ice to really shine the way it could. You'll never emulsify this drink by stirring. And cracked ice will allow the chunky components to be visually represented to the customer.

@Egor Vezdenev, I totally understand your concern about aeration. But you'd be surprised how the jam/marmalade still retains it's chunkiness when dry-shaken (no ice). And the cracked ice let's those chunky bits be presented on the top of the drink.

Try this:

KOWLOON COCKTAIL #3
(DOF glass + Cracked Ice)
In mini-shaker (no ice):
~ 1.5-sp. Korean Citron honey "marmalade"
~ 60-mL New Amsterdam gin (or your favorite orange-forward gin)
~ 25-mL Cointreau/Bauchant orange liqueur
~ 30-mL Earl Grey + Lapsang souchong simple syrup
~ Splash fresh Lemon Sours
DRY SHAKE--NO ICE!!!.
POUR OVER CRACKED ICE in glass... Be certain the marmalade is suspended on top!)
GARNISH w/ Orange slice
GARNISH w/ Angostura mist (optional).

A true breakfast cocktail!

Inital thought: WHOA! WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? I'll be honest, the puppetry was both really cool and super-creepy! (The logo'd shirt helped to keep it real, thank you!) All told, your video is too much PERFORMANCE and not enough SUBSTANCE. You really did a great job editing this, but the captioning is (surprisingly) difficult to read because of that terrible font. Know this: when I'm going out for a drink, the showmanship is the middle-most point of judgement--and too much will turn me off!

@Katerina, I love sea buckthorn and I find the concept to be lovely. The video, however, I found to be quite distracting from the art of the cocktail itself.

Would love to see more of your bartending skills and your puppetry... though, in separate media.

Too much flair-nonsense. Just make me my drink without making a mess! As for recipe... so muddled coffee beans and rum. WHY IS IT RED?

А чего не в труселях?)))

@Diffords: If all text is copyright protected--and that's fine!--then please offer translation on each post.

You've done this before. But still... wiping your hand on your lapel is more trashy than funny. But I get what you're going for: #CoViD-Cocktails

You display too much bling to make you feel legit. And your recipe is a bit... sparse. (Is this all we have to look forward to after coronavirus?)

Inital thought: WHOA! WHAT IS GOING ON HERE? I'll be honest, the puppetry was both really cool and super-creepy! (The logo'd shirt helped to keep it real, thank you!) All told, your video is too much PERFORMANCE and not enough SUBSTANCE. You really did a great job editing this, but the captioning is (surprisingly) difficult to read because of that terrible font. Know this: when I'm going out for a drink, the showmanship is the middle-most point of judgement--and too much will turn me off!

You get lots of points for using the berry-basil jam--tradition, what?! But... that cocktail needs to be DRY-SHAKEN and poured over cracked ice to really shine the way it could. You'll never emulsify this drink by stirring. And cracked ice will allow the chunky components to be visually represented to the customer.

As a Gen-Xer, I HATE YOUR VIDEO. It is also PERFECT. Though without mixing and tasting myself, your recipe still seems totally solid! Please continue to *keep it real* like you do and you will be a GREAT bartender!

If you're pre-measuring your ingredients, why are you using a jigger? Is it just to make you look like a bartender? FAIL.

Your Mai-Tai recipe does not have the proper level of citrus required to provide balance. You also don't specify your brand of triple-sec--which is a huge deal because they are all so different! I just shook up a version of your recipe: Havana Club (US version), Torani Almond, Montezuma triple-sec (not my favorite) and Zaya dark rum (to top)... a lime-butt to garnish (lightly squeezed). NEEDS MORE CITRUS. Vote was accidentally cast as 4.5 stars. Should be 3.5 stars. Love your video, though!

I've attempted the Algonquin many times over a 12-yr period... and I never "got" it. Now that the vermouth game is finally afoot here in the States, preparing this cocktail with Blanc/Bianco makes SO MUCH SENSE!