Delmonico

Difford’s Guide
Discerning Drinkers (114 ratings)

Serve in a Coupe glass

Ingredients:
1 12 oz RƩmy Martin V.S.O.P. cognac
1 oz Strucchi Rosso Vermouth
1 dash Angostura Aromatic Bitters
× 1 1 serving
Read about cocktail measures and measuring

How to make:

  1. Select and pre-chill a Coupe glass.
  2. Prepare garnish of orange zest twist.
  3. STIR all ingredients with ice.
  4. FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.
  5. EXPRESS orange zest twist over the cocktail and use as garnish.

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol
Medium
Boozy
Strength 7/10
Sweet
Medium
Dry/sour
Sweet to sour 6/10

Review:

A Sweet Manhattan with cognac substituted for the whiskey.

View readers' comments

History:

Named after and likely created at New York's Delmonico's Steakhouse Restaurant, the history of which dates back to 1837 when the Delmonico brothers opened "the first fine dining restaurant in the country." There is still a Delmonico's in New York City but the restaurant owned by the Delmonico family at 44th Street and Fifth Avenue closed in 1923.

The Delmonico Cocktail appears in Albert Stevens Crockett's 1935 Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book.

DELMONICO
Dash of Orange Bitters
One-half French vermouth
One-half Plymouth Gin
Two slices Orange Peel
Adopted from the bar of Old Delmonico's, a long famous New York restaurant.

Albert Stevens Crockett, 1935

In his 1948 The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, David Embury handily informs us that a Delmonico "is a plain Manhattan with cognac substituted for the whisky. If orange bitters are used instead of Angostura, it becomes a Harvard [not according to others]. This is sometimes also called a Saratoga. The real Saratoga, however, is made with apple brandy. There is also a Delmonico Special which is merely a Medium Martini with 1 teaspoon of brandy to each drink and a twist of orange peel."

Nutrition:

One serving of Delmonico contains 147 calories

Alcohol content:

  • 1.3 standard drinks
  • 23.98% alc./vol. (23.98° proof)
  • 18.1 grams of pure alcohol

Difford’s Guide remains free-to-use thanks to the support of the brands in green above. Values stated for alcohol and calorie content, and number of drinks an ingredient makes should be considered approximate.

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Werd Bmocsil’s Avatar Werd Bmocsil
19th June at 03:09
Courvoisier VS, Foro Vermouth di Torino, and Angostura this time. For some reason this combination really highlighted the apple flavoring in Courvoisier tglasses.

At 75-80 ml, I think it looks better in a Nick & Nora glass.
Werd Bmocsil’s Avatar Werd Bmocsil
19th June at 04:10
Oh, no wonder I liked it. It's a Charles Cocktail with 2:1 proportions.
C N’s Avatar C N
7th July 2024 at 01:14
I'm a huge fan of Manhattans, and I also love cognac cocktails. This is the best of both worlds. I think it would be difficult to order this at a bar, though.
John CARR’s Avatar John CARR
30th October 2024 at 13:12
Try anything once šŸ˜‰?
Juan Hatton’s Avatar Juan Hatton
29th February 2024 at 20:29
Excellent stuff. Smooths out the brandy lovely. I’m going slightly heavier on the ango. Will experiment with my other bitters.
John Hinojos’ Avatar John Hinojos
6th January 2023 at 05:02
This was a wonderful evening cocktail. Slightly spicy from the Angostura. Very balanced. Would definitely have again.
12th June 2022 at 09:26
This is actually really good. I think this actually does taste better than manhattan.
Use a good vermouth tho
13th October 2021 at 08:18
Delicious. I only had Delord Armanac on hand but it worked out for the best! Delicious. I enjoy a Manhattan but find I don't drink enough of them to go through my sweet vermouth before it spoils. This was a nice change of pace and will no be my go to when I have excess vermouth.