Author Notes
We recently had dinner at the home of some friends. I asked if I could bring anything, and my friend, who had heard that I enjoyed making cocktails, wondered if I had any fun Christmas cocktails up my sleeve. Although I have never had a classic Manhattan -- I’m a dark spirit late bloomer and usually drink it neat -- I love bourbon and this is what I came up with. Like any good Manhattan, as written it is a little boozy, but can be mellowed out with the addition of ice cubes in your glass and/or topped with club soda It is lovely at the end of a long day. —gingerroot
Test Kitchen Notes
I thought this was a yummy and surprising twist on a Manhattan. Both my husband and I really enjoyed it. You don't usually see bourbon and dry vermouth together, but the sweet tang of the pomegranate molasses and the bitters helped to marry bourbon's sweet oak with the more vegetal vermouth flavors (I used Bulleit Bourbon and Dolin Dry) making for a complex cocktail that was still easy drinking. —fiveandspice
Continue After Advertisement
Ingredients
-
1 teaspoon
pomegranate arils (and any juice that may have accumulated when removing them)
-
2 ounces
good bourbon
-
1 ounce
dry vermouth
-
1 teaspoon
pomegranate molasses
-
3
drops Bittercube Jamaican #1 bitters
-
Ice
-
twist of lemon
-
club soda (optional)
Directions
-
Muddle pomegranate arils in a shaker. This is mostly for color.
-
Add bourbon, dry vermouth, pomegranate molasses, and bitters. Throw in a few ice cubes. Shake vigorously until shaker is cold and frosty.
-
Strain into your glass of choice, add lemon twist (and ice and/or club soda, if desired), and enjoy. Repeat.
My most vivid childhood memories have to do with family and food. As a kid, I had the good fortune of having a mom who always encouraged trying new things, and two grandmothers who invited me into their kitchens at a young age. I enjoy cooking for the joy it brings me - sharing food with loved ones - and as a stress release. I turn to it equally during good times and bad. Now that I have two young children, I try to be conscientious about what we cook and eat. Right about the time I joined food52, I planted my first raised bed garden and joined a CSA; between the two I try to cook as sustainably and organically as I can. Although I'm usually cooking alone, my children are my favorite kitchen companions and I love cooking with them. I hope when they are grown they will look back fondly at our time spent in the kitchen, as they teach their loved ones about food-love.
Best of all, after years on the mainland for college and graduate school, I get to eat and cook and raise my children in my hometown of Honolulu, HI. When I'm not cooking, I am helping others grow their own organic food or teaching schoolchildren about art.
See what other Food52ers are saying.