I need a "manly" cocktail

I see no problem with it, if it is a period piece.
P

To me, a manly man's cocktail would be a good, old fashioned G&T, which, in England would come with a wedge of lemon, rather than lime as they do here.

I used to like gin gimlets a whoooooooole lot: gin and a splash of Rose's lime juice. My manliness gauge is busted, though.

I'm trying to remember what Bertie Wooster and his crowd drank; you might try checking the Wodehouse canon.

Perhaps a Rob Roy? Or perhaps an Old Fashioned.

How about a Brandy Alexander? That's the most manly cocktail I can think of!

GirlWithPoisonPen said:

My British MC is drowning his sorrows in a swanky hotel bar in Berlin. Instead of the usual vodka, whiskey, etc., he decides to order a cocktail.

Right now I have him drinking a sidecar, which was invented in London during World War I.

Here's the text:

"Much to his delight, the bartender knew how to make a sidecar. Normally, he'd chose vodka for getting piss drunk, but he was feeling sentimental for London and the tart taste of cognac, Cointreau, and lemon juice."

Is a sidecar a "manly" enough cocktail?

It's also 1937, so no doing tequila shots.

Here's a list of cocktails: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cocktails

This wine drinker thanks you kindly for your help.

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The only "manly" cocktail is three inches of rye whiskey, neat, in a dirty glass.

But seriously, Mata-

These days, a cocktail is any mixed drink. But if you're using the word "cocktail" pre-WWII, it's a mixed drink that includes bitters, water and sugar. A mixed drink without bitters was a sling. A mixed drink that's liquor and a non-alcoholic mixer (like a gin and tonic) was and is a highball.

And since all mixed drinks are, well, mixed, they're inherently more complicated than something you're drinking solely for the purposes of getting drunk. Which means they aren't as "manly" as a straight shot of, say, scotch. Or gin. And manly men aren't delighted. We're miserable. And hairy.

Neither Cognac nor Cointreau (both French) would remind me of London.

Hope that helps.

You may talk of gin and beer,
When you're quartered safe out here,
And you're sent to penny fights and Aldershot it....

Depends a bit on his background but I'm not sure a cocktail works.
How about his favourite single malt which he is delighted to find the bar stocks?

I read your post subject and thought of the sidecar before I read your remarks. Your choice is spot on. Another thought would be the sazerac--very old and exotic.
C

GirlWithPoisonPen said:

My British MC is drowning his sorrows in a swanky hotel bar in Berlin. Instead of the usual vodka, whiskey, etc., he decides to order a cocktail.

Right now I have him drinking a sidecar, which was invented in London during World War I.

Here's the text:

"Much to his delight, the bartender knew how to make a sidecar. Normally, he'd chose vodka for getting piss drunk, but he was feeling sentimental for London and the tart taste of cognac, Cointreau, and lemon juice."

Is a sidecar a "manly" enough cocktail?

It's also 1937, so no doing tequila shots.

Here's a list of cocktails: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cocktails

This wine drinker thanks you kindly for your help.

Click to expand...

Cocktails are never manly.

That is all.

My husband drinks rum & diet Pepsi, with a drop or two of lime juice.

No commentary welcomed on the wisdom of mixing rum (sugar) and diet cola, please...I can't stand the mere idea.

My father was not only a man's man but he was a true gentleman. At home his winter drink was a highball. In the summer he preferred his version of a collins, one very tall glass containing gin or vodka mixed with 7-Up and a dash of bitters. Eating out he ordered a Manhattan.

Watching a baseball or football game demanded beer, never drunk from a can or bottle but in a glass. He preferred Pilsner.
C

Since you're speaking of London:
Tom and Jerry

The name is related neither to the popular MGM cartoon nor to famous bartender "Professor" Jerry Thomas, the author of one of the first bartender's guides, How to Mix Drinks (1862).

Instead, it is a reference to Egan's book, Life in London, or The Day and Night Scenes of Jerry Hawthorn Esq. and his Elegant Friend Corinthian Tom (1821), and the subsequent stage play Tom and Jerry, or Life in London (also 1821). To publicize the book and the play, Egan introduced a variation of eggnog by adding ½ fl oz of brandy, calling it a "Tom and Jerry". The additional fortification helped popularize the drink.[1]

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These were popular cocktails in the 1930s that sound masculine:

Allies
1/2 Dry Gin
1/2 French Vermouth
2 dashes Kummel

Angler
2/3 Dry Gin
1/3 Hercules (doesn't get more masculine than that)
2 dashes Angostura Bitters
2 dashes Orange Bitters

Adonis
2/3 Dry Sherry
1/3 Italian Vermouth
1 dash Orange Bitters

My regards,

scarletpeaches said:

Cocktails are never manly.

That is all.

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Not any more, they're not.

But then they were popular. I'd just give him a martini but that may just be me.

I'm a fan of Rob Roys, martinis, whisky sours, and gimlets myself.

As I recall, the British in Singapore sat on the terrace of the Raffles Hotel drinking Gin & Tonic and Singapore Gin Slings, certain the the Japanese would never take the island. Of course, the Japanese did take the island and that was it for those manly drinks until the end of The War.

From Wikipedia: Raffles is where the Singapore Sling was invented. The cocktail was invented by bartender Ngiam Tong Boon between 1910 and 1915.

I'm in agreement with the scotch crowd.
A Rob Roy (scotch and sweet vermouth with a dash of bitters) is about as sissy as I would want to get.
Anything more fussy like a sidecar (which is delicious, by the way) would spoil the mood.

Choose a cocktail that is all booze: Rob Roy, dry gin martini or the like for a manly drink.
Then imagine Humphrey Bogart drinking it to see if it works for your scene..

Bottom's up!

Chumplet said:

Perhaps a Rob Roy? Or perhaps an Old Fashioned.

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I second the Old Fashioned.

I just have to say that I'm so tired and glanced at the title of this thread and say

"NASTY" cocktail in stead of manly. That made me laugh.

You're just the little nasty potty mouth aren't you?

Brandy and Cognac's were popular among upper crust men during that period... sidecar seems a bit frou frou to me.

Vodka is a good choice. Can't get much more manly than that!