LCBO Food & Drink Autumn 2023

PLAYING FAVOURITES

The Classic Cocktail guru and frequent Food & Drink contributor Christine Sismondo provided The Classic recipe in our Summer 2020 issue, combining the ideal ratio of 2 oz rye whisky, 1 oz sweet red vermouth, 3 dashes Angostura bitters and five ice cubes in a mixing glass. Stir well for 45 seconds and strain into a chilled coupe, she wrote, then “garnish with a plump, rich amarena cherry from Italy, like Toschi or Fabbri brands.”

The Manhattan An emblem of New York’s flamboyant Gilded Age, the Manhattan is nonetheless timeless, like any great work of art.

THE TWISTS

The Perfect Manhattan using half dry white and half sweet red vermouth, is already a splendid cocktail in its own right. There’s a pleasing symmetry in choosing the vermouths from the same producer. You could substitute amontillado sherry for the vermouth, use orange bit ters instead of Angostura, then add a thumb-size piece of orange peel and garnish with a lemon twist—voilà! Now you have a Spanish Manhattan, as created for our Autumn 2018 issue by Michelle P. E. Hunt and Laura Panter, aka The Martini Club.

Find recipes at LCBO.com/ fdautumn23

WHY RYE?

Manhattans made with bourbon or Canadian corn‑blend whiskies are easily found but only a pure rye whisky has the necessary lightness and sharp spice to challenge the sweetness of vermouth. Alberta Premium Whisky ( LCBO 984, $29.75 ) is the iconic choice in Canada.

HISTORY

This cocktail was created at The Manhattan Club on November 3, 1874, to celebrate the election of Samuel J. Tilden as governor of New York. Many insist that it was Jennie Jerome, the renowned beauty and socialite, who asked the barman to come up with something special and new that night, but it cannot be true. She was in England at the time with her husband, Lord Randolph Churchill, staying at Blenheim Palace and about to give birth to her son Winston. It seems the anonymous barman acted alone….

48 FOOD & DRINK AUTUMN 2023