How to Make the Perfect Maple Manhattan Cocktail

Elevate your cocktail experience and savor the taste of fall in a glass with the Maple Manhattan. It's a sweet and warm cocktail for cool autumn nights, and might just be the perfect Manhattan.

One Little Change Has a Big Impact

Now that the weather has turned chilly, a cool evening is the perfect time for a strong cocktail. This fall cocktail recipe is a variation on the classic Manhattan cocktail. No one seems to be quite sure where this variation started. I like to think it was created by a bartender at one of the small ski lodges off the slopes in Vermont. I've read that it may have started at The 21 Club in New York, but who really knows?

Many recipes call for 2 ounces rye whiskey, but I prefer to stick pretty close to the original recipe and use Bourbon. I do slightly change things up by calling for a spicy Bourbon, such as Henry McKenna Single Barrel.

What Is Maple Syrup?

Pure Maple syrup is made from the tree sap of the sugar maple and various other maple trees. When we lived in the midwest, our house sat on a couple of acres in a forest that had many sugar maples. One of our neighbors used to tap the trees in our area by drilling holes in them and attaching plastic tubing that drained the sap into small barrels. Once he'd collected enough, he would then spend a day boiling it down in his backyard to form the syrup. Since we always let him tap our trees, he'd give us some free bottles of it. One of my favorite things to use it for was making a maple Manhattan. Now that live in LA, we just buy syrup at the store like everybody else -- and it's pricey!

Our friends to the north in Canada are the world's leading producers of maple syrup, and developed a grading system that we have adopted here in the US. It can be a bit confusing, but try to purchase a Grade A Light Amber for a quality tasting syrup. Be sure to choose genuine maple syrup and not maple flavored pancake syrup -- they are not the same thing. The maple flavored syrup is basically a sugar syrup with artificial flavoring in it. It's much less expensive and has an inferior taste to the real thing.

If you really want to splurge, treat yourself to the Pappy Van Winkle Bourbon Barrel-Aged Maple Syrup. This is a pure infused maple syrup with the flavors of vanilla, caramel, butter, and oak, and will definitely elevate your cocktail experience!

Ingredients for a Maple Manhattan

If you are a regular Manhattan drinker, you probably already have everything you need to make this one.

• Your favorite Bourbon, or if you prefer, Knob Creek Rye
• Sweet vermouth (not dry vermouth)
• Maple syrup (which takes the place of a simple syrup)
• Bitters
• Maraschino cherry

As you can see, it is not that different from a classic Manhattan cocktail or even an Old Fashioned.

Bar Tools Needed

Like a traditional Manhattan, this cocktail is popular because it is so easy to make --and simple cocktails are the best cocktails. It doesn't 'require' any special tools, but here are a few basics your bar most likely already has that will make a good drink every time out:

• Cocktail shaker instead of a mixing glass
• Jigger
• Strainer
• Bar spoon

How to Serve this Cocktail

A note about the glass for a Maple Manhattan:  I've seen many places serve it in a cocktail glass or a rocks glass, but I've always preferred to drink this in a coupe glass. Because the glass is stemmed, my hand doesn't warm it up and the broad bowl lets me enjoy the smell of the drink and really engage my senses.

Tips for Success

It's hard to go wrong with a classic whiskey drink, but here are a few things to keep in mind:

• Use a quality Bourbon when mixing cocktails. Even with a sweet syrup, a poor spirit will shine through and turn your cocktail into a harsh-tasting near-miss.
• Use a higher graded maple syrup. It will cost more, but it will have even better flavor.

Which do you prefer in your Maple Manhattan, Rye or Bourbon? There are some places that make this drink with a slight twist, the Maple Bacon Manhattan, but I find adding bacon to a cocktail makes it a bit too savory for my tastes.

Before you go, did you try this cocktail? Why not leave a comment in the Comments section along with a rating? I always appreciate hearing from you and getting your feedback.