A Light Cocktail

The cocktail once dominated the dinner out scene. For some, it does so still but for most, the cocktail and dinner have fallen apart.

The men and women who suffered the grand illusion of the cold-war kept good spirits under the insidious threat of nuclear obliteration. To help, they earned and consumed more wealth than their parents could have imagined and they had cocktails. Cocktails mixed for strength; cocktails mixed to obliterate for a bit the pressures of never-enough and the low-level, stress inducing thoughts of unmet enemies with the power to atomize.

In the media of the time and the decade following, portrayals of cocktail drinking carry a certain, noir romance. The low-light of dinner clubs with soft, background music, live or otherwise, contrasts with the blaring energy and multiple television screens of modern bars. In this softer setting, people had a chance to drink and talk, to flirt, woo, coo and sip strong cocktails. Cocktails and introspection often go hand in hand.

The strength of cocktails; a high ratio of spirit to other flavors became a value over time. “Oh, he mixes a strong drink.” could be heard at most watering holes. Today, it seems this may have been the wrong direction. If you enjoy cocktails and drink them to the strength of bartenders’ guides, you know that in a night you can only handle a few of the ice-cubed drinks. Only one if you are driving. Four if you want someone to help you into the car. Consider, given the enjoyment of a good cocktail is a good thing, a cocktail with fewer spirits and more flavor. Spirits are strong stuff. The essence of wine and beer distilled to a wallop. The ancient Greeks, one of the models for Western values and civilization, watered their wine and considered unwatered wine dangerous. Yet, we refuse to dilute our spirits.

This small drink began as a brandy Manhattan. A brandy Manhattan, per most guides, contains ice, 2 parts brandy, 1 part sweet vermouth and an optional cherry. Step one in the evolution of this cocktail was to reverse the order to: 1 part brandy and 2 parts sweet vermouth. This provided a sipping drink with slightly more flavor than the original but still a drink best kept to 2 an hour at the most. The next step was to top the glass with water. Many cocktail drinkers wrinkle their noses, or worse, at the idea of watered spirits, but others find spirits and water the best combination. This got to a nice, smooth cocktail with decent flavor.

The final step in tuning this cocktail was taken to provide some color and a bit more flavor. The mix was further limited to 1 part brandy and 1 part vermouth. The water was replaced by 100% juice, cranberry and blackberry preferred though cranberry and anything will really do it. Now we havea drink that can be sipped and enjoyed from pre-dinner to beyond desert. Just enough alcohol to free one’s spirit but not so much the spirit stumbles. In flavor, the drink is delightful and what the heck, it has vitamin C.

For an extra treat, find a brandy blended with spice. A very, very nice, vanilla touched brandy is available that will add a subtle, secret ingredient touch to this modified Manhattan.

Enjoy and drive responsibly.

copyright Chromia Poetics 2006