Before we begin, don’t worry. This “bar” isn’t going anywhere. This is a tribute of sorts to a great bar that is no longer. Up until late last month, there was a bar in the Seaport area of Boston that was called Drink. What made it great was that it was one of those bars that didn’t have any bottles on display, everyone had a seat, and there were enough bartenders working to pay attention to their small corner of the room to facilitate conversation and find out what you liked, didn’t like and what you were in the mood for. I liked going because it was off the beaten path (If you’ve never been to Boston, the Seaport is a BITCH to get to), and you never had the same kind of experience when you went. Sadly, it all ended rather abruptly when it suddenly closed, citing “rising and unsustainable costs”. My guess is their landlord jacked the rent on them since for some reason, the Seaport is the trendy new neighborhood and they’d rather have a venue sit empty in the hopes of higher rent, rather than take the existing client’s reliable income stream.

Luckily, an article came out lamenting the loss of such a good bar, but it preserved their signature cocktail: The Fort Point. Named after the Fort Point Channel you had to walk over to get to the bar, this is a Manhattan riff, that surprisingly I never ended up having there. It’s rye based, with benadictine, another ingredient I have yet to play with so I’m excited to try this one.

2 oz. rye whiskey
.5 oz. Punt e Mes (or other sweet vermouth)
.25 oz. Bénédictine
Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with ice and stir for 15 to 20 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe, and garnish with a cocktail cherry, on the side.

A quick note here. The recipe calls for Punt e Mes. Not having that on hand, I took the suggestion in the article and used regular sweet vermouth and added a couple drops of bitters to bring it close to the flavor or Punt e Mes.

Anyway, not much of an aroma on this one. I’m surprised at this. I thought the rye would be more prevalent. Perhaps the benadictine is holding it back? Either way, it’s very mild and doesn’t influence the sip at all.

Of which, the drink is excellent. I get a lot of the rye up front. That makes sense because it’s mostly rye. I can see why this is in the same area as a Manhattan. The sweet vermouth and the rye see to that. However, it almost seems….lighter? That’s the best way to describe it. The benadictine adds a very subtle, herby and floral flavor to the drink that isn’t prevalent up front, but about midway through you can pick it up. I think the way it works here is excellent. It doesn’t overpower but adds a great depth to push this drink to greatness.

Sadly, I can’t go compare my version to the bars. However I’m glad someone was able to publish their signature drink so at least I can play “Drink: The home game” with one of their creations.

(Banner image courtesy Matthew Tetrault Photography)