Jason, who is the manliest (super straight, hold the rocks) whiskey drinking man of all time has been walking around with a cherry in his cocktail for weeks. So, for him... nice and easy:
1 1/2 ounces Scotch
3/4 ounce Sweet Vermouth
1 dash Bitters
Stir ingredients with ice, strain into a cocktail glass, and serve. Garnish with a cherry.
All you're missing now is Jessica Lange in a leather corset.
God loves a cheerful giver.
For about two years when I first moved to DC this was all I drank. And I just watched the movie on Friday (again), AND I just referenced Rob Roy in an e-mail about the Upper Crust. Stop stalking me Svetlana. Creeps me out.
The Gibson taught me about these, and I haven't had one as good as theirs since.
It's really all about the Scotch (obviously doesn't have to be 18 year since you're mixing, but still good Scotch) and the amounts. As with any good cocktail the percentages have to be right.
Yesterday I was watching Gladiator on TNT and made me think of the badass final swordfight at the end of Rob Roy (the movie).
Jason, try the one at Matchbox. It's decent. Also, the boys at Bourbon make pretty solid ones (unsurprisingly). While the Scotch is very important, the vermouth and the bitters still matter.
I hate/it cracks me up that Matchbox has sexually segregated cocktail lists
We all know which one I'll be ordering from
they call them "manly martinis" and "girly martinis". the latter list should basically have cale as a mascot. holding a parasol.
So Cale has graduated from virgin daquiris and shirley temples?
Yeah, the whiskey gets pretty well lost in the ice and vermouth, although I suppose it works better with one that benefits from the ice (I personally like Macallan to have a nice cold rock in the middle). Derek calls the Gibson's a "classic" RR but I'm convinced they throw something else in there. The amount of bitters really matters, and the ice should be really, really, really, really cold, which is where most places go wrong. The cherry is stupid and should be retired.
And yeah - why the hell is every happy hour menu on the distinctly "girlie" side? Nobody needs that many appletini variants.
I went to the Passenger last week and had a Rob Roy with a splash of Domaine de Canton. SO good.
make sure you order your rob roy with a blended scotch, something middle of the road is best (like dewars) because anything better is best consumed with just a touch of water. I once had a rob roy at coppi's that they made with laphroaig. I love laphroaig but jesus christ that was gross and wrong in so many ways.
p.s. do NOT try to order one of these in scotland.
a Kurt Vonnegut character was a fan of a sweet Rob Roy in Hocus Pocus. To get away from the cherry order a Dry Rob Roy (dry vermouth) or a Perfect Rob Roy (half and half sweet and dry vermouth). Both of the latter should be served with a lemon twist. Only the sweet gets the gross cherry thing that people try to tie the stem into a knot with their tongue to show how good they are (presumably) at licking snatch.