“Then again she heard the rain, and for the first time was afraid of it. She drew the coat around her. Then she picked up Manhattan no. 3, drank half of it, set it down again. Without looking at her, he filled her glass. They sat a long time, neither of them looking at the other.”-James M. Cain, Mildred Pierce.
Like most everything, cocktails go in cycles. It seems that every 10 years or so, there is a spate of “return of the cocktail” articles. In the mid-90s, there was the short-lived lounge movement, exemplified by Swingers, which, perhaps as a reaction to the scruffiness of grunge culture, revived exotica music, swing dancing, vintage suits and smoky, Rat Pack-style cocktail lounges. Apparently, we’re in the midst of one now, according to a number of articles. For some of us, cocktails are independent of fashions and trends-Sex and the City did not make me want to drink Cosmos-and will never go out of style; For those of us who live in Portland, we’ve been fortunate to have a number of low-lit, classy, but unpretentious lounges open in the past few years, which are dedicated to solid classic cocktails rather than any kind of gimmicky concoctions, such as anything with the suffix “tini.”
Though often overshadowed by its more popular and iconic cousin, the Martini, the Manhattan is older and just as regal. If not the king of cocktails, it has a rightful claim to be the prince. Some have called it the drinking man’s (or woman’s) cocktail. Like the Martini, the Manhattan is almost elementally simple (three ingredients), but rewardingly complex. It isn’t as shrouded in folklore, legend and anecdotes, which makes it a less flashy, but perhaps more nuanced drink to order or serve. We know it was created sometime in the late 19th century in New York City and originally used the much more popular rye whiskey. In one origin story, it was created for a banquet thrown by Winston Churchill’s mother. While it seems simple, it requires as much subtlety and balance as the Martini and should be very cold. Rye is starting to be used again, but I like a good bourbon. If it’s made with scotch, it’s a Rob Roy.
Ingredients
Three ounces of bourbon (I like Bulleit.)
Three-quarters ounces of sweet vermouth
A dash of bitters
Stir with ice in a cocktail shaker, strain, and serve in stemmed glass. A cherry is the most common garnish,
In Portland, Oregon try one at the Sapphire Hotel (5008 S.E Hawthorne).
by Lukas Sherman
