Name: Manhattan (Sweet)
Total time: 3 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 45 ml Bourbon whiskey; 15 ml Rye whiskey 50% abv; 30 ml Rosso/sweet vermouth; 1 dash Aromatic bitters

Ryan Harrold Premium Member 12w

I made this with Buffalo Trace, Knob Creek Rye, Carpano Sweet Vermouth & Scrappy Aromatic Bitters and copied the comments by adding a barspoon of Maraschino Cherry Syrup, which makes a Manhattan go from a 4.5 star to a 5 star, however as much as I love bourbon, I might prefer a Manhattan with just rye whisky and no bourbon

Ryan Harrold Premium Member 12w

I just checked and it looks like I’m going to have to add the High Ryeser cocktail to my wish list, as that answers what I might prefer

Tuber Magnatum Premium Member 1w

I tried this so long ago I can't remember my thoughts on Rye vs. Rye / Bourbon. It's a moot point now as we only have rye available and very much enjoyed it tonight. You will like the High Ryeser cocktail I'm sure: I do!

John CARR Premium Member 1y

Was intending to make a nightcap sipper but it disappeared so quickly! Maker’s 46, Rittenhouse and Cocchi storico.

Tuber Magnatum Premium Member 1w

As this was cocktail of the day I wanted to make this tonight as a pre-dinner drink not realizing it is considered by some as more of a digestif / after dinner drink. As suggested by others to add a barspoon of Maraschino syrup it worked perfectly! (After all, it is a Sweet ManhatanI). I should add though, Bourbon is still not available here, so I only had rye which maybe "toned" it down a bit?

Calvin Grant Premium Member 1w

So sorry about the stinky orange mess in the white house. Stand Fast!

Scott McIsaac Premium Member 1y

A note on blending bourbon and rye: Triticale is a grain that is a hybrid of wheat and rye. Some distilleries are beginning to make whiskey from it. I've found that Dry Fly Straight Triticale whiskey makes a very nice Manhattan.

Paul Belczowski 1y

Tried something a little different with this one. I usually stick to my go-to recipe, but this time I swapped out the sweet vermouth for Chambord raspberry liqueur — and it was fantastic! Not saying it’s the ultimate version, but definitely worth a try. If you do, try it and let me know what you think!

John CARR Premium Member 1y

Don’t have any Chambord but I sometimes swap in my favourite lingonberry liqueur for the sweet element in a cocktail and it generally comes out well. So similar idea I’m guessing. Have you tried the Cherry Manhattan also on diffords? Can recommend!

Paul Belczowski 32w

That sounds amazing

Paul Webb 32w

Genius!

Egg McKenzie 1y

i made with bulleit rye (95% rye) and martini rosso and it came out very dry. splitting the base with bourbon would help, or perhaps a sweeter vermouth. it didn't hit the spot so i need to revisit along the lines of this recipe.

John CARR Premium Member 1y

Yeah Bulleit rye is amazing but super spicy. Definitely good to cut it back with something more harmonious. I’m currently loving Elijah Craig but any of the decent bourbons will mellow it nicely.

Tony Jones 1y

Hi Mr Difford
I appreciate you have to change your website, but it's gone really hard to use.
I've got a bottle of 101, but your site doesn't think I can make this cocktail because it doesn't think I have any bourbon.
What's going on?
(Couldn't find another way to contract you.)

Simon Difford Verified User Premium Member 1y

We categorise standard strength bourbon (circa 45%) and BIB (50%) as different ingredients due to taste and affect on our calorie and alcohol strength calculations. However, I have now linked these as interchangeable ingredients so hopefully will now work for you.

Annechien Premium Member 1y

I make this with rittenhouse rye and martini rosso. 2:1 is perfect for me. And a generous splash of luxardo syrup goes in with the cherry. Together with the ango spice an orange zest this is a lovely cocktail for the colder and darker days.

Annechien Premium Member 1y

After finishing the martini rosso I bought a bottle of carpano antica and all of a sudden I didn’t enjoy this cocktail anymore. I started reading up on manhattan preferences online and somewhere I found the information that fixed my problem. With a bold vermouth like antica you just need different ratios. Now I do 2,5 shots rittenhouse rye to 1 shot carpano antica and I’m a happy girl again.

Scott McIsaac Premium Member 1y

I agree with the 2:1 ratio and the cherry syrup (I typically add about a barspoon). My favorite vermouth is Carpano Antico, and my favorite whiskey is Angel's Envy or Jameson Black Barrel, but to my taste these proportions work well with nearly any bourbon, rye, or Irish and nearly any red vermouth.

Annechien Premium Member 1y

Ah yes, I see where I went wrong. It should have been: “ With a bold vermouth like antica *I* just need different ratios.” My preferences are not universal of course. I still consider myself quite new to this cocktail business and I love to read everyone’s personal experiences in the comments. There’s usually a wealth of information in there. I looked up your whiskey preferences and I must say especially the Angel’s Envy has got me intrigued. Not cheap but still within my price range where I live. Into my wish list it goes..

Eugene Granger 1y

Irish whiskey is for me a great choice

Paul Belczowski 1y

The bourbon and rye combo really sets this apart. This is a favourite as I prefer American style whisky as opposed to scotch and therefore understandably that some prefer the Rob Roy. Both are great for all the right reasons

John CARR Premium Member 1y

Exactly. I think we tend to go through phases of preferring certain flavours, or balances of sweet/sour/dry/aromatic etc. From a traditional herbal medicine point of view, this will be balancing certain states of the body’s tissues.
Agree re the specialness of the combo of the two whiskies. … I also love an Affinity for a scotch-based alternative.

John CARR Premium Member 2y

Recently acquired a selection of The bitter truth bitters. Their aromatic bitters works fantastically well with a sweet rye mahattan. 60 Rittenhouse 25 carpano, bitters, orange twist and Luxardo cherry. Wonderful depth of flavour.

1 ¹⁄₂ fl oz	Bourbon whiskey
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Straight rye whiskey (100 proof /50% alc./vol.)
1 fl oz	Strucchi Rosso Vermouth
1 dash	Angostura Aromatic Bitters

Manhattan (Sweet)

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