Glass of Damson Manhattan

Damson Manhattan

Cocktails, Damsons, Drinks

This is a nice sipping drink of a dark evening, and one of my favourite uses of my first batch of damson vermouth.

Damson Manhattan
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Damson Manhattan

Controversially, this is an equal parts 50/50 Manhattan, although clearly you can double the bourbon for the more classic recipe. I find this hits a really good balance with the damson vermouth, which isn’t as sweet as a typical Italian red vermouth. It also works well with a blended whisky, like Monkey Shoulder, in which case it would be a Damson Roy perhaps rather than a Rob Roy.
I’m using Peychaud’s Bitters rather than the more usual Angostura for that little hint of the aniseed licquorice flavour that goes well with the almondy damsons.

Ingredients

  • 25ml Bourbon

  • 25ml Damson vermouth

  • 1-2 dashes Peychaud’s Bitters

  • 1 dash syrup from your precious jar of Maraschino cherries

Directions

  • Mix in a tumbler with ice, nothing fancy needed
  • Serve as it is, or in a coupe, with a Marschino cherry if possible

Notes