Shop

STORY

Thought to have been created for Winston Churchill’s mother at the Manhattan Club, this simple classic thrives on quality ingredients. Our unique 10yr Tawny Port based Vermouth brings natural cherry notes & tannins rounded out with hints of roasted orange. Luxury elevated!

Recently there has been some doubt over the story that this cocktail was created at a banquet for Lady Randolph Churchill to celebrate the birth of Winston. This is due to the fact that the banquet took place in November of 1874 when Lady Churchill was in England. However, we like the story so much and it has been part of cocktail history for so long that we see no reason why the Manhattan club would not feature a cocktail in her absence to celebrate the birth of her child. Afterall cocktail culture is often shrouded in mystery for many reasons, least of all the fact that people’s memories aren’t too reliable after an event with legendary cocktails served in abundance.

With a cocktail so well loved and recognised as the Manhattan is was an honour and privilege to work on improving the formula. For us it was of massive importance not to change the recognisable profile of the cocktail, Afterall expectation plays an important part in choosing to enjoy a specific cocktail. First, we started with the whiskey. In true Cocktail Concierge tradition, we have created our own blend of premium whiskies in order to create the right flavour profile for the drink, we rested that whisky on both American white oak as well as Applewood to impart a rural rusticity. Next we looked at the vermouth element and decided that the ideal vermouth had yet to be created. The vermouth that we wanted must have sweet and dry in perfect balance and include notes of cherry and plum as well as an incredibly long finish that carries the whiskey along for the ride. Due to these criteria we decided to base our vermouth on a 10yr Tawny Port and decorated it with traditional wormwood and botanicals. Our antique bitters play a role in spicing up the whiskey, but we then softened the tones with a small additional blend of Cherry Brandies and Liquors. The results are truly multi-layered and a joy to behold!