This is the all time classic drink made from rye whiskey, sweet vermouth and bitters (and of course, a cherry). Many make this with bourbon whiskey (some consider it blasphemy due to the sweeter overture of a Bourbon as opposed to Rye) and Canadian whiskey (I guess this one goes back to the Prohibition Era). The proper way to serve this is in a chilled glass – neat – with no ice. I prefer with a King ice though. If served without ice, a martini (cocktail) glass would be the appropriate glass. With ice, a lowball glass is a must.

Among bartenders, it is common practice to stir the drink instead of shaking it before pouring into a chilled glass. In the olden days, it had to be done to avoid the froth that formed (and with whiskey and vermouth, it may take some time to go away) but these days, the alcohol production is far more refined and has less of the very fine pollutants that cause the froth in the first place.

The origin of this classic drink is a little confusing. It was either made by a bartender called Black in Manhattan, New York (Broadway, to be specific) in the 1860s or by Dr. Iain Marshall at the Manhattan Club in New York in the 1870s.

In this, I used Southern Rye Whiskey, Gallo Vermouth and Peychaud’s bitters.