A brooding, spirit-forward drink that reads like a Manhattan with a darker streak: spicy rye and sweet vermouth deepened by a measure of cherry brandy, stirred cold and served up. A coupe rinsed with absinthe leaves a ghost of anise hovering over the dark fruit, and a twist of lemon peel lifts the nose.
Garnish: Lemon Peel
Stirred · Coupe · Up
rinse
Pour absinthe into a chilled coupe and swirl to coat the interior; discard the excess.
add
Add rye whiskey, sweet vermouth, and cherry liqueur to a mixing glass filled three-quarters with ice.
stir
Stir until well chilled and properly diluted.
strain
Strain into the absinthe-rinsed coupe.
garnish
Express a lemon twist over the surface and add it to the glass.
No single inventor is on record for this one. Charles H. Baker Jr., who chronicled rather than created it, wrote of drinking it in Havana in 1933 while revolution shook Cuba and set it down in his 1939 book The Gentleman's Companion — its name echoing "Remember the Maine," the rallying cry of 1898. A nearly identical recipe, McKinley's Delight, had been printed earlier still, in the 1935 Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book. The IBA now counts it among its Unforgettables.