Stomping Through the "Savoy" (2007–2008)

[mkayahara]

I know I recently read an article or write up about the drink.  I thought it was in David Wondrich's "Imbibe!".  However, paging through, I don't see it.  I suspect it may have been one of Ted Haigh's columns for the magazine Imbibe.

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Yes, there was one in the July/August 08 Imbibe. There, Haigh recommends "spicy ginger ale or ginger beer," and I've seen other references to using ginger beer for this drink. (I like to think of it as a Dark and Stormy made with Scotch instead of rum.) What kind of ginger ale did you use, Erik?

[eje]

Yes, there was one in the July/August 08 Imbibe. There, Haigh recommends "spicy ginger ale or ginger beer," and I've seen other references to using ginger beer for this drink. (I like to think of it as a Dark and Stormy made with Scotch instead of rum.) What kind of ginger ale did you use, Erik?

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Oh, oops forgot to note.

I used the Fever Tree Ginger Ale. It's not super spicy, but I like it because it has a nice clean taste and isn't overly sweet. Some of those Jamaican Style Ginger Beers are really funky tasting.

[bostonapothecary]

"The Post Standard", 7th March 1902

"It was while Miss Taylor was the prima donna of an opera company playing at Ontario Beach, near Rochester, in 1899," he said, "that she was asked with a number of other members of the company to go out sailing on the lake. As the day was hot and the breeze rather strong, the party returned after a few hours longing for some cooling refreshments. When Miss Taylor was asked what she would have she expressed the wish for a long but not strong drink--in fact, a claret lemonade. When the drink was served it was very evident that it wasn't a claret lemonade, for it looked like a delicious long drink of sparkling champagne. On tasting it Miss Taylor found it much to her liking, but asked to have the flavor softened with a piece of lemon peel. When this was done the new combination drink was declared a complete success. Bystanders had been watching the proceedings and noticing the evident enjoyment with which Miss Taylor and a few of her friends relished in new drink they finally asked the hotel keeper what drink it was that was being served to them and without hesitation the hotel man replied "a Mamie Taylor" and the name seemed to meet with instantaneous favour and has become famous all over the country."

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i find myself making something really similar when i'm running around and barely have time to really enjoy something. the refreshing over the top nature of the whole thing really resets you and puts your mind at a more reasonable pace...

i'd say a subtle smokiness is a requisite flavor contrast but i'd rather use cachaca or a martinique rum like saint james.

[eje]

Manhattan Cocktail (No. 1)

Use small Bar glass.

2 Dashes Curacao or Maraschino.

1 Pony Rye Whisky.

1 Wineglass Vermouth (Mixed).

3 Dashes Angostura Bitters.

2 Small Lumps of ice.

Shake up well, and strain into a claret glass. Put a quarter of a slice of lemon In the glass and serve. If preferred very sweet add two dashes of gum syrup.

So the Savoy Manhattan Cocktail (No. 1) is pretty much verbatim from Jerry Thomas:

Manhattan Cocktail.

(Use small bar-glass.)

Take 2 dashes of Curacoa or Maraschino.

1 pony of rye whiskey.

1 wine-glass of vermouth.

3 dashes of Boker's bitters.

2 small lumps of ice.

Shake up well, and strain into a claret glass. Put a quarter of a slice of lemon in the glass and serve. If the customer prefers it very sweet use also two dashes of gum syrup.

The only real differences being the directive to use "1 Wineglass Vermouth (Mixed)", which I can only assume to mean a mixture of Dry and Sweet Vermouth and Angostura vs. Boker's.

I was trying to think of way to make this a little more than, as David Wondrich describes it, "a vermouth cocktail with a stick." The first thing that occurred to me was to use a cask strength whiskey. I contemplated the Handy, and then decided to go with the...

Yeah, well, sorry about that. On the bright side, the new Buffalo Trace Antique Collection should be available again soon. And, well, speaking of things that it is unlikely that many other people have...

Yeah, the bitter truth guys made a stab at a Boker's replica a while ago. It's a nice old-school bitters with a strong cardamom element.

At this point, I'm thinking, heck if I'm going to use 2 obscure ingredients, I might as well use 3...

So, the cocktail is:

1 teaspoon Bols Dry Orange Curacao

1 oz George T. Stagg Whiskey

1 oz Carpano Antica Vermouth

1 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth

1 tsp. Bitter Truth Boker's Bitters

Stir with ice and strain into a cocktail glass. Lemon Peel.

I wasn't sure what to expect with this cocktail. I have to admit I've never gone this far into whiskey debt when making a Manhattan, nor have I ever had the courage to add that much bitters.

To be honest, it doesn't really taste like what I think of when I imagine a Manhattan. But it is, actually, a very nice cocktail. Very complex with only a little hint of the brawn of the whiskey towards the end of the cocktail when it warms up.

Very drinkable.

[bostonapothecary]

Manhattan Cocktail (No. 1)

Use small Bar glass.

2 Dashes Curacao or Maraschino.

1 Pony Rye Whisky.

1 Wineglass Vermouth (Mixed).

3 Dashes Angostura Bitters.

2 Small Lumps of ice.

Shake up well, and strain into a claret glass. Put a quarter of a slice of lemon In the glass and serve. If preferred very sweet add two dashes of gum syrup.

i just stirred up a "manhattan cocktail no. 1" with creole shrub, potrero 18th century rye, angostura, boisiere dry vermouth, and cribari new york state sweet vermouth.

pretty cool and i'm appeased. i'd say cask strength is a requisite. the angostura does seem to dominate the cocktail. these drinks are kind of cool but kind of muddy tasting. you don't really pick out all the varietals. i think if i changed to noilly prat dry i wouldn't know it... i think i would have liked it better with a nice assortment of exotic bitters instead of angostura.

[bostonapothecary]

Manhattan Cocktail (No. 1)

Use small Bar glass.

2 Dashes Curacao or Maraschino.

1 Pony Rye Whisky.

1 Wineglass Vermouth (Mixed).

3 Dashes Angostura Bitters.

2 Small Lumps of ice.

Shake up well, and strain into a claret glass. Put a quarter of a slice of lemon In the glass and serve. If preferred very sweet add two dashes of gum syrup.

i just stirred up a "manhattan cocktail no. 1" with creole shrub, potrero 18th century rye, angostura, boisiere dry vermouth, and cribari new york state sweet vermouth.

pretty cool and i'm appeased. i'd say cask strength is a requisite. the angostura does seem to dominate the cocktail. these drinks are kind of cool but kind of muddy tasting. you don't really pick out all the varietals. i think if i changed to noilly prat dry i wouldn't know it... i think i would have liked it better with a nice assortment of exotic bitters instead of angostura.

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i thought i'd give this another try with some modern options before i hit the town... these savoy people had to be in the know on something and i think it was their loud proportions...

1 oz. macallan cask strength

1 oz. boissiere dry vermouth

1 oz. chamberyzette replica

.5 tsp creole shrub

.5 tsp luxardo marashino

dash peychaud's, dash, raegan's, dash bee sting bitters for pouty lips...

omg. so good. i think with more focused flavor choices you can taste everything... the more focused and transparent nature of the chamberyzette really makes a spectacular whiskey worth using. though i'd probably ditch the liqueurs. the color of the drink is also kind of sexy.

[thirtyoneknots]

Just tried this myself with Grand Marnier, Old Grand-Dad 114, Punt y Mes, Noilly Prat, and a dash each of Angostura, Regans, and Fee's Aromatic. Pretty unusual, the Punt y Mes dominates a bit and definitely a far cry from what I expect from a Manhattan, but danged if it ain't tasty. Cask Strength would have been better but I couldn't bring myself to break into precious Thomas Handy so the OGD had to do. Worth a spin.

ETA: Much, much tastier as it warms. This might have to go in the rotation.

Edited September 1, 2008 by thirtyoneknots (log)

[eje]

MANHATTAN COCKTAIL. (No. 2.)

1 Dash Angostura Bitters.

2/3 Canadian Club Whisky. (1 1/2 oz Pikesville Rye Whiskey. Sorry Canadians.)

1/3 Ballor Italian Vermouth. (3/4 oz Carpano Antica Vermouth)

Shake (I stirred) well, strain into cocktail glass, with cherry (Uh, oops. And damn I have some really good cherries!).

(Named after the island on which New York City Stands.)

Anyway, this, to me, is pretty much the quintessential Manhattan.

2/3 Rye Whiskey, 1/3 Italian Vermouth, with a dash of bitters. If I had to pick one cocktail that I was gonna be stuck with for the rest of my life, this would be it.

[thirtyoneknots]

Anyway, this, to me, is pretty much the quintessential Manhattan.

2/3 Rye Whiskey, 1/3 Italian Vermouth, with a dash of bitters.  If I had to pick one cocktail that I was gonna be stuck with for the rest of my life, this would be it.

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Word.

[eje]

Manhattan Cocktail (Sweet)

1/2 Italian Vermouth. (1 1/2 oz Carpano Antica Vermouth)

1/2 Rye or Canadian Club Whisky. (1 1/2 oz Michter's, U.S. #1 Straight Rye)

(dash Angostura Bitters)

Stir well and strain into cocktail glass. (Luxardo Cherry.)

Couldn't leave out the bitters, sorry.

This Manhattan was also really tasty, I must say.

Well integrated and harmonious flavors.

[eje]

Manhattan Cocktail (Dry)

1/4 French Vermouth. (3/4 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth)

1/4 Italian Vermouth. (3/4 oz Carpano Antica)

1/2 Rye or Canadian Club Whisky. (1 1/2 oz Sazerac Straight Rye Whiskey)

(dash angostura bitters)

Stir well and strain into cocktail glass.

I saved the Sazerac Rye for last, as it is one of my favorite Manhattan Whiskies.

Oddly, I didn't care for it. The drier blend of vermouths really accented the musty character of the whiskey.

When examining various Manhattan recipes, the instructions from this Manhattan recipe from the Mud Puddle Books reprint of the 1900 edition of Harry Johnson's Bartender's Manual stuck out:

Manhattan Cocktail

(Use a large bar glass.)

Fill the glass up with ice;

1 or 2 dashes of gum syrup, very carefully;

1 or 2 dashes of bitters (orange bitters);

1 dash of curacao or absinthe, if required;

1/2 wine-glass of whiskey;

1/2 wine-glass of vermouth;

Stir up well; strain into a fancy cocktail glass; squeeze a piece of lemon peel on top, and serve; leave it for the customer to decide, whether to use absinthe or not.  This drink is very popular at the present day.  It is the bartender's duty to ask the customer, whether he desires his drink dry or sweet.

Edited September 8, 2008 by eje (log)

[Chris Amirault]

Subbing in NP for the Dolin, I've made this exact drink, and I agree wholeheartedly. I have to say that Perfect or Dry Manhattans never seem quite right to me.

[thirtyoneknots]

Concur as well; dry vermouth and brown spirits in general is a tricky combination most of the time.

[eje]

Manyann Cocktail

The Juice of 1 Lemon.

2 Dashes Curacao. (generous 1 tsp. Bols Dry Orange Curacao)

1/2 Gin. (1 oz Boodles Gin)

1/2 Caperitif. (1 oz St. Raphael Aperitif Gold)

Shake well and strain into port wine glass.

In the interest of my own edification, and in the absence of Caperitif, I picked up a bottle of St. Raphael Gold, having read it was some sort of Quinquina.

Uh, hmmm....

Well, the St. Raphael Gold is interesting.

To me it tastes more like a moderately sweet, pale sherry than a Quinquina. Odd, I've never before tried an Aperitif Wine that reminded me of a Sherry.

I'm also not sure what to make of the recipe. It's about the only one in the Savoy that combines lemon with Caperitif, so it makes me suspect that it isn't the Caperitif providing sweetness. That it was at least a somewhat dry aperitif.

To be honest, the Manyann might be pretty refreshing with a bit more curacao, ice, and some seltzer.

As written above, I can't say I found it rated much more than a "drinkable".

Edited September 9, 2008 by eje (log)

[eje]

Just tried this myself with Grand Marnier, Old Grand-Dad 114, Punt y Mes, Noilly Prat, and a dash each of Angostura, Regans, and Fee's Aromatic.

[...]

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Good call on the OGD 114. You might have over bittered slightly, what with the bitter nature of Punt e Mes and all. Still, sounds like something I would enjoy.

[eje]

[...]

1 oz. macallan cask strength

1 oz. boissiere dry vermouth

1 oz. chamberyzette replica

.5 tsp creole shrub

.5 tsp luxardo marashino

dash peychaud's, dash, raegan's, dash bee sting bitters for pouty lips...

omg. so good. i think with more focused flavor choices you can taste everything... the more focused and transparent nature of the chamberyzette really makes a spectacular whiskey worth using. though i'd probably ditch the liqueurs.  the color of the drink is also kind of sexy.

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Damn, that does sound appealing. Now I'm going to have to pick up a bottle of Macallan Cask Strength and re-try the Affinity with that instead of the Compass Box.

[bostonapothecary]

Damn, that does sound appealing.  Now I'm going to have to pick up a bottle of Macallan Cask Strength and re-try the Affinity with that instead of the Compass Box.

i'm in love with macallan cask strength... i've been looking for the saint raphael for a while and have never seen it around here. is it common in california?

[bostonapothecary]

I'm also not sure what to make of the recipe.  It's about the only one in the Savoy that combines lemon with Caperitif, so it makes me suspect that it isn't the Caperitif providing sweetness.  That it was at least a somewhat dry aperitif.

if you pair caperitif with lemon juice it would have to be sweet... if there was as little sugar as dry vermouth wouldn't the drink be far too tart, kind of flat tasting, and out of balance...?

[eje]

i'm in love with macallan cask strength...  i've been looking for the saint raphael for a while and have never seen it around here. is it common in california?

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No, not really.

I've only ever seen St. Raphael Gold at the one store, that I can remember, and I've never seen the rouge. The store seems to sort of specialize in aperitifs for some reason. They used to carry the Americano and have a bunch of other interesting looking things, like Figoun, which I'll have to try one day.

[eje]

if you pair caperitif with lemon juice it would have to be sweet...  if there was as little sugar as dry vermouth wouldn't the drink be far too tart, kind of flat tasting, and out of balance...?

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Yeah, except this is really the only recipe in the Savoy Cocktail which pairs it against tart citrus. The Cape Cocktail uses orange juice, but the are spirits, other aperitifs, maybe curacao, and a small amount of bitters. So I don't think it was sweet on par with a liqueur.

But who knows.

Perhaps it was a balanced bitter sweet aperitif?

[thirtyoneknots]

[...]

1 oz. macallan cask strength

1 oz. boissiere dry vermouth

1 oz. chamberyzette replica

.5 tsp creole shrub

.5 tsp luxardo marashino

dash peychaud's, dash, raegan's, dash bee sting bitters for pouty lips...

omg. so good. i think with more focused flavor choices you can taste everything... the more focused and transparent nature of the chamberyzette really makes a spectacular whiskey worth using. though i'd probably ditch the liqueurs.  the color of the drink is also kind of sexy.

←

Damn, that does sound appealing. Now I'm going to have to pick up a bottle of Macallan Cask Strength and re-try the Affinity with that instead of the Compass Box.

←

At work tonight I made 2 Affinities for customers with the Laphroaig Cask Strength, they were well-recieved. Pretty dang tasty, the intensity of the Laphroaig is well-tamed by the vermouths and bitters, and yet there's still something slightly uncivil and brash underneath. I have a regular who loves to drink things with peaty single-malt as their base, he calls them 'mean drinks'. The LCS Affinity is sort of a mean drink that won't hit you himself, since he might mess up his suit, but he has henchmen to do it for him.

I'd drink it again.

Edited September 10, 2008 by thirtyoneknots (log)

[eje]

Margato Cocktail (Special)

1/3 Bacardi Rum. (3/4 oz Montecristo White Rum)

1/3 French Vermouth. (3/4 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth)

1/3 Italian Vermouth. (3/4 oz Carpano Antica)

1 Dash Kirsch. (1/3 tsp. Trimbach Kirsch)

The Juice of 1/2 Lemon.

The Juice of 1/3 Lime.

A little sugar (scant teaspoon caster sugar) dissolved in soda-water.

Shake well and serve in cocktail glass.

Uh right. If this recipe makes sense to anyone, feel free to let me know. Who measures "The Juice of 1/3 Lime"?

It's pretty OK. Tasting mostly like a slightly vermouth-ey glass of tart lemonade. Certainly, the alcohol is well disguised. Maybe that is the point?

There is a Cuban rum cocktail with dry vermouth and lime. Not El Presidente, I can't think of what it is called. I suppose this is sort of a "perfect" version of that cocktail.

[eje]

[...]

There is a Cuban rum cocktail with dry vermouth and lime.  Not El Presidente, I can't think of what it is called.  I suppose this is sort of a "perfect" version of that cocktail.

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To answer my own question, it was the "Presidente Vincent" cocktail, that I was thinking of.

Edited September 12, 2008 by eje (log)

[eje]

Marguerite Cocktail

1 Dash Orange Bitters. (Angostura Orange Bitters)

1/3 French Vermouth. (3/4 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth)

2/3 Dry Gin. (1 1/2 oz North Shore No. 11)

Shake well and strain into cock- tail glass. Twist orange peel on top.

Another of the many, many Martini variations in the Savoy.

North Shore makes 2 gins. The No. 11 is supposedly their more traditional Juniper forward dry gin. It is quite tasty but it seems a bit floral still to be called a truly traditional.

Still, it makes a very nice Martini, errr..., Marguerite.

PS. I just love these valencia oranges from the market. They literally drip oil when you pull the twist. Just awesome. Tasty too!

[eje]

Marmalade Cocktail

(6 People)

By its bitter-sweet taste this cocktail is especially suited to be a luncheon aperitif.

Place the following mixture in the shaker:

2 Dessertspoonsful Orange Marmalade. (1 tsp. D'Arbo Bitter Orange Marmalade)

The Juice of 1 big or 2 small Lemons. (Juice 1/2 small lemon)

4 Glasses Gin. (2 oz Death's Door Gin)

(Dash Simple)

Shake carefully and pour out, squeezing a piece of orange rind into each glass.

As usual re-doing the recipe for 1.

The lemons I found last week were a bit on the green side. When I tasted it before shaking, it wasn't quite there. Definitely needed a little extra simple to bring it into line.

An enjoyable cocktail! A bit of a pain to double strain, due to the marmalade.