A Manhattan is a cocktail made with whiskey, sweet vermouth, and a dash of bitters. Commonly used whiskeys include rye, Canadian, bourbon, and Tennessee whiskey. Proportions of whiskey to vermouth vary from a "sweet" 1:1 to a "dry" 4:1, but the classic mixture is 2:1. The cocktail is often stirred with ice and strained into a cocktail glass, where it is garnished with a Maraschino cherry with a stem.^* A Manhattan is also frequently served on the rocks in an old-fashioned glass.

The Manhattan has been called a drinking man's cocktail — strong, urbane, and simple — but it has not achieved the recognition of the more widely known Martini.^*

Origin & History

A popular history suggests that the drink originated at the Manhattan Club in New York City in the early 1870s, where it was invented at a banquet hosted by Jennie Jerome (Lady Randolph Churchill, Winston's mother) in honor of presidential candidate Samuel J. Tilden. Research indicates that various, similar, local cocktail variations, all referred to as "Manhattan," existed for decades prior to this event. But the general consensus is that the Jerome/Tilden event is what made the recipe of "American Whiskey, Italian Vermouth, and Angostura bitters" famous as the Manhattan cocktail.^*

J.P. Morgan reportedly consumed a Manhattan at the end of every trading day on Wall Street.

Variations

Today bitters are frequently omitted by barmen unless specifically requested; purists, however, maintain that bitters are required to offset the sweetness of the whiskey and vermouth. Some drinkers add juice from the cherry jar or Maraschino liqueur to the cocktail for additional sweetness and color. Some recipes call for substituting orange bitters for the Angostura bitters.

Originally, bitters were considered an integral part of any cocktail, as the ingredient that differentiated a cocktail from a sling.^* Over time, those definitions of "cocktail" and "sling" have become archaic, as sling has fallen out of general use (other than in certain drink names), and cocktail can mean any drink that resembles a martini, or simply any mixed drink.

Interestingly, a milder Manhattan for unsophisticated drinkers, using more Vermouth and less whiskey, may appear to the drinkers as being stronger because of the intense flavor of the sweet red vermouth.

Manhattans are traditionally made with brandy rather than bourbon in Wisconsin and a few surrounding areas. Therefore, it is wise to specify your preferred spirit when traveling in these areas.

The following are other variations on the classic Manhattan:

• A Rob Roy is made with Scotch whisky as its principal ingredient.
• A Perfect Manhattan is made with equal parts sweet and dry vermouth.
• A Cuban Manhattan is a Perfect Manhattan with dark rum as its principal ingredient.
• A popular Florida option consists of a lime slice instead of the cherry, bitters, and dry vermouth.
• A Latin Manhattan is made with equal parts of white rum, sweet and dry vermouth, and a splash of Maraschino cherry juice, served up with a twist.

Pop Culture

Manhattans, along with cosmopolitans, recently became more popular due to their frequent consumption on the HBO television series, Sex and the City.^*

In The Simpsons episode Bart the Murderer, Bart Simpson is spared by the Springfield Mafia by making "superb" Manhattans for them.^*

See also

• List of cocktails

Cocktails_with_bourbon | Cocktails with whiskey

Manhattan (Getränk) | Manhattan (cóctel) | Manhattan (cocktail) | マンハッタン (カクテル) | Manhattan (pijača)