Thankfully we’ve reached the end of the work week, and not too soon. This week I’ve been doing some experimenting. A while back at a Superb Owl party I hosted, some friends brought over a bottle of Martini and Rossi Fiero. That is a sweet orange (and slightly bitter) vermouth. I was tasked by my friends to come up with some uses for this slightly out there ingredient. The first attempt at finding a good use was a twist on a vermouth spritz. I didn’t document it here (sadly) but the too long, didn’t read review was it was good, but it could be improved on. Remembering I had this bottle in the fridge, I wanted to try another experiment. What if I swapped out the sweet vermouth in a Manhattan with the Fiero? I’ve used orange bitters in a Manhattan before, as well as the occasional orange peel garnish as well, so it’s worth a shot right?

Fiero Manhattan

2 oz. Rye

1 oz. Martini and Rossi Fiero orange vermouth

2 dashes angostura bitters

1 barspoon maraschino syrup (optional)

Combine all ingredients in a rocks glass with a giant ice cube. Stir until chilled.

It looks like a regular Manhattan, maybe slightly darker? I don’t exactly think that makes sense because the orange vermouth is still a dark vermouth. In fact it might be a bit lighter than regular sweet. As to the aroma, it kinda smells like a Manhattan, but it’s noticeably different. You can definitely pick up the orange from the Fiero in there.

So this is…interesting, and I’m not sure if it’s a good thing or a bad thing. It initially is sweeter than I would have expected, even by a Manhattan’s standard. That makes me really happy I did this with rye instead of bourbon. Rye is definitely needed here, the extra zing helps out the overall profile. Mixed in with the sweetness up top is most of the orange flavor provided by the vermouth. It takes over immediately and stays constant throughout. The barspoon of maraschino syrup might be the overall culprit of the over the top sweetness I’m picking up. But I do somewhat find that hard to believe since I’ve added the same(ish) amount when I’ve been lacking the cherries themselves. If I had to guess, I would say something in the Fiero is amplifying the sweetness in the syrup. The finish is the same mixture of whiskey laced orange and sweetness. There is a little bit of orange-y vermouth aftertaste that hangs out on the palate when you finish. It lasts a bit longer than I would have preferred, but doesn’t terribly impact the overall drink.

To test the theory of the maraschino making it too sweet,  I made a second one and skipped the maraschino syrup and there is a noticeable difference in flavors. It’s still sweeter than what I would prefer but nowhere near as much as before. Mrs. Sharkbait compared the sweetness of the first attempt to robitussin, which isn’t good to say the least. Aside from the sweetness difference, the orange flavor is much more intense. I can start to pick up a subtle bitterness that wasn’t there before. Of the two versions, I think I prefer the second one, sans the maraschino syrup.

Even though I preferred the version without the syrup, I don’t think I’d go out of my way to make this. It was too much orange, and pretty much ruined what would make a good Manhattan. While it was still drinkable, I think I need to find a different drink to use the Fiero in.

(Banner image courtesy Matthew Tetrault Photography)