Never mind that it’s a Wednesday night, or that Manhattans are pure booze with a cherry on top: APO Bar and Lounge is having a night of specially prepared Manhattans from 5pm until close, made with Rittenhouse Bonded Rye whiskey.
Word is that there will be over 15 different interpretations of the historical Manhattan, which is traditionally whiskey, vermouth, ice, and bitters. Not only that — Head Bartender Nicholas Jarrett is also concocting Philly neighborhood-based variations of the cocktail, so Gray’s Ferry partisans can order from their hood and so forth.
Here’s what really seals the deal though: they’ll also be mixing versions of the classic drink from a host of New York City speakeasy/pre-prohibition bars like Death & Co., Pegu Club, Milk & Honey, and Brooklyn’s Jack The Horse Tavern.To give a bit of context, New York Magazine named Death & Co. the best cocktail bar for brown liquors. The best sell for tonight’s Manhattans though, is from a bartender at Death & Co.:
People associate a Manhattan with a strong drink or something with so much vermouth in it that you can’t really drink it. It’s great to show people that if they do like whiskey, how great of a cocktail that can be when balanced correctly.
What he said.
Alex Day of Death & Co. Cringes Over Dirty Martinis [GS]
APO Bar and Lounge [MenuPages]
Death & Co. [MenuPages]
Jack The Horse Tavern [MenuPages]
[Photo: a Manhattan via _gee_/Flickr]
