Rebecca’s Manhattan
If there are two things you have come to expect of me, they are 1. cursing and 2. making outlandish statements like how I invented the question mark.
So I know you will be skeptical when I tell you that Rebecca’s manhattan is the best in the whole fucking world. But that statement is not just on-brand, it is true.
So, here’s the story: My friend Rebecca has had a million manhattans and I have had a million manhattans (and not just in one sitting). Some were good and some sucked ass. As in too-sweet monstrosities with crushed ice or neon pink cherries or effing pineapple. Pineapple? Really???
And then one night she texted me with a recipe. “A manhattan”, she wrote. “A really good one.”
Tomasso, the manager at her favorite Italian restaurant had served her this and then was nice enough to give her the recipe. Rebecca, being the awesome person she is, and my bestie, followed this recipe by gifting me a bottle of Luxardo Sangue Morlacco, the key to this delightful concoction.
But don’t take only Rebecca’s and my recommendation. See the glowing reviews below:
“This is the best damn thing in the whole wide world.” - literally everyone.
See?
Now. How do you know if you are worthy of this Manhattan? Try to find a bottle of Luxardo Sangue Morlacco liqueur. If you can find one, you’re worthy.
Sangue Morlacco is a sweet cherry liqueur, not the maraschino liqueur the same company sells in the iconic basket-wrapped bottle. Both are outstanding but serve different purposes in cocktails.
One could say the Luxardo family knows cherries. I was hoping the company motto would be “Popping cherries since 1821” but I couldn’t find that anywhere on their website. Clearly they need me writing their copy.
Shit You Need
2.5 ounces rye
.5 ounces Sangue Morlacco liqueur
.5 ounces Cocchi Vermouth di Torino or Carpano Antica vermouth
Orange twist for garnish. This is not a slice of orange. This is a shaving of the orange rind without the white pith, “expressed” over the glass and then placed along the inside of the glass, so you get a bit of orange aroma as you drink.
Cocktail cherries, also for garnish. Find small ones in syrup so dark it almost looks black. Luxardo, Jack Rudy, and Filthy Food all make great ones.
I am a huge fan of bitters - I even make my own - but I do not use them here. Rye has great spicy and grass notes, and with the cherry against the orange, it’s perfect.
Keep Calm and justeffingmix
Add rye, liqueur, and vermouth to a mixing glass. Add a generous few handfuls of ice and stir 30 sec.
Pour into a chilled glass (neat), or into a double old-fashioned glass with one large ice cube.
Place two cherries on a cocktail skewer and add to glass. Express a bit of the orange oil from the peel over the glass, and add the peel to the glass.
Enjoy with a glowing fire, ideally in a smoking jacket. Or, even better, a non-smoking jacket…you will live longer and enjoy many more manhattans that way.
