Spicy rye and dry vermouth build a lean, Manhattan-style spine, served up and bracingly cold, while a single teaspoon of Cynar threads bittersweet artichoke depth through the middle. Maraschino adds only a whisper of cherried sweetness, so the drink finishes austere, boozy and quietly complex.
Garnish: Maraschino Cherry
Stirred · Nick & Nora · Up
add
Combine rye whiskey, dry vermouth, maraschino liqueur, and Cynar in a mixing glass.
stir
Add ice and stir until well-chilled, about 20-30 seconds.
strain
Fine strain into a chilled Nick & Nora glass (or coupe), served up.
garnish
Optionally garnish with a maraschino cherry.
Chad Solomon came up with the Bensonhurst in New York in 2006 as a workaround for the Brooklyn cocktail, whose recipe depended on Amer Picon, a bitter that had grown scarce. He swapped in Cynar, and the new drink appeared on Pegu Club's spring menu that same year. Solomon took its name from Bensonhurst, the rough-and-tumble Italian-American neighborhood in Brooklyn, giving the older drink a sibling christened after one of the borough's own districts.