Rob Roy
A twist on Manhattan
Prep time:
Born in New York in 1894 and named after a Scottish outlaw. Swapping rye for Scotch sounds minor and turns the whole drink around.
Ingredients
- 60 ml blended Scotch whisky
- 30 ml sweet vermouth
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters
- A maraschino cherry
Preparation
- Chill the coupe while you make the drink.
- Add the Scotch, vermouth and bitters to a mixing glass with ice.
- Stir for twenty seconds. Never shake: this is all spirits, and shaking clouds it.
- Strain into the chilled coupe.
- Drop the cherry in.
Bartender’s notes
How is it different from a Manhattan?
Only in the whisky, and that is enough. A Manhattan is made with rye or bourbon; a Rob Roy, with Scotch. Same ratio, same vermouth, same bitters, same way of stirring it. But Scotch changes the drink more than you would think. Rye is spicy and leans on the vermouth; a blended Scotch is drier, with a malty base and sometimes a touch of smoke, which makes the Rob Roy come across as less sweet with exactly the same sugar. If you like a Manhattan but find it cloying, this is the first one to try.
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