Godfather
35 ml Scotch whisky, 35 ml Amaretto, 237 ml Ice
Photo: Rob Roy Cocktail by TheCulinaryGeek · CC BY 2.0 · All credits
Ingredients
Measures below are multiplied for 6 drinks. Unmeasurable amounts such as “a splash” are left as written.
- 360 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 360 ml line. Scotch whisky - A blended or Highland malt; a heavy peated one will take over the drink
- 180 ml Measuring jug A measuring jug: pour to the 180 ml line. Sweet vermouth
- 12 dashes Bottle Twelve quick shakes of the bottle - each a few drops, about a millilitre. Angostura bitters
- 6 cherries Maraschino cherry (optional)
Measured in Millilitres (UK). Sign in to read these in American measures. Print a kitchen card at this size.
What the jigger, the spoons and the jug hold, in millilitres and in fluid ounces, is on the measures reference.
Quick version
- Stir the whisky, vermouth and bitters over ice and strain into a chilled glass.
Method
Pitcher (6 drinks)Pitcher (6 drinks) - about 540 ml of measured ingredients, before ice and dilution.
Timings and per-glass steps below are written for one drink and are not scaled. A full jug takes longer to chill, so stir or shake until it is properly cold rather than by the clock, and pour over fresh ice one glass at a time.
- Fill a mixing glass with ice, then add the whisky, sweet vermouth and bitters.
- Stir for 30 seconds.
- Strain into a chilled coupe, or over one large cube in a rocks glass.
- Add a cherry.
Serve it
Volumes in this story are multiplied for the size above, along with the ingredients. Years, ratios and the capacities of glasses and jugs are left as written.
Rob Roy
The drink was named in 1894 for the operetta about Rob Roy MacGregor that was playing in New York, and a bartender at the Waldorf-Astoria put his name on a Manhattan made with Scotch. It has been the answer to "something like a Manhattan, but Scottish" ever since, and it is a much better drink than its reputation as a footnote suggests.
Getting it right
Which Scotch you choose changes the drink more than any other decision here. A soft blended whisky gives you something close to a Manhattan with a Highland accent; a heavily peated Islay malt gives you a smoky, medicinal, wonderful thing that is barely related. Both are worth drinking, and it is the sort of choice to make once and then make again the other way, just to know.
Tasting notes
Honey and heather from the whisky, dried fruit from the vermouth, and a long warm finish. If it tastes thin, it wants another few seconds with the ice.
More Scotch whisky cocktails
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Penicillin
60 ml Scotch whisky, 20 ml Lemon juice, 20 ml Honey syrup, 1 slice Ginger, 7.5 ml Mezcal, 1 piece Crystallised ginger