As anyone who appreciates whiskey can tell you, good things get better with time. The rye and bourbon produced at Great Jones Distilling Co. is no exception. After last year’s success, Manhattan’s Manhattan cocktail competition, which is presented by Great Jones and VinePair, is about to return for its second year.
To clinch first prize — $5,000 in cash and the opportunity to have the winning drink featured on VinePair.com — entrants must showcase their own creative spin on the classic cocktail using Great Jones’ Straight Bourbon or Rye Whiskey. Once a recipe and an accompanying photo of the drink are received, cocktails will be judged by six criteria: Creative Brief, Use of Great Jones, Craft, Knowledge, Appearance, and Flavor.
There was never any doubt over what cocktail would feature in a Great Jones-organized competition. As the first and only distillery to open in Manhattan since Prohibition, Great Jones has a unique relationship to the drink that bears its borough’s name. In fact, Great Jones Distilling Co. is the only place in New York City you can enjoy a Manhattan cocktail, made with Manhattan whiskey, at a Manhattan distillery.
“To me, Great Jones Rye is the perfect whiskey to feature in a Manhattan. From a flavor standpoint, it checks all of the boxes I want in a rye. It’s spicy, bold, and rich [in character].” says Bridget Ramsey, whose Midnight Rhapsody took first place at the competition’s initial installment. “More than that, it tells the story of New York’s cocktail history in a bottle.”
Ramsey found particular inspiration in the distillery’s address of 686 Broadway at the very border of Greenwich Village and NoHo. Drawing on the neighborhood’s status as a Bohemian capital studded with jazz bars and social clubs in the early 20th century, she created a Manhattan that riffs on the traditional base of rye, sweet vermouth, and Angostura bitters with molasses syrup, green walnut liqueur, apple-infused Madeira, and finally a pickled apple ball as garnish.
“I wanted to craft a drink that complemented the dark and sultry notes that Great Jones Rye has,” she continues. “In place of sweet vermouth, I used Madeira, but not just any Madeira. I chose the Rare Wine Co.’s New York Malmsey Madeira, which was created to emulate the style of Madeira that would have been consumed in New York when it was a colony.”
In another twist to honor local flavor, Ramsey infused the Madeira with baked McIntosh apples, which are native to New York. Another modifier has an Empire State connection — the green walnut is a local nut species.
All this local influence connects with Great Jones. Not only is the distillery New York-based, but it distills entirely from New York grains and water.
“Great Jones whiskeys promote the bounty that is the agricultural landscape in New York, and I wanted to make sure that this echoed through every sip of my cocktail,” Ramsey says.
Bartender and “Spirited Women” co-author Sammi Katz, a semi-finalist in the 2024 competition, similarly leaned into apple for her submission, Storm King.
“I had a blast creating my cocktail for the Great Jones Manhattan competition. The Great Jones rye whiskey makes for a delicious Manhattan,” she says. “To me, the spices present in the rye evoke a warm apple pie, so I paired it with an apple aperitif to enhance those flavors.”
Conscious of Great Jones’ ingredient sourcing, she was similarly appreciative of its ties to local agriculture.
“I also loved that the rye grain used in the whiskey comes entirely from New York State, because the Hudson Valley was once considered the breadbasket of America. Having a great whiskey distillery in the heart of Manhattan is exactly what this city needed, so I was thrilled when Great Jones opened.”
Cocktail consultant Samuel Allan, who was also a finalist in 2024, found Great Jones’ Empire Rye to be an ideal building block for a more creative Manhattan. Featuring grilled corn-infused sweet vermouth and apple bitters, he dubbed his own effort the Manna Manhattan.
“I found a lot of elements in the flavor profile of the rye that I thought would coordinate well with both a traditional Manhattan and a riff on a Manhattan,” he says. “You want it to be spicy but round — not too spicy so that it falls flat or is too dry, because a Manhattan is traditionally a pretty round drink without being sweet.”
Another 2024 finalist, Austin McCormick, drew inspiration from beyond Manhattan’s borders to make a variation energized by Bushwick’s vibrant and colorful burlesque scene. Called the Bewitched in Bushwick, it was prepped with Empire Rye, cherry liqueur, sweet vermouth, spicy cherries, Lambrusco, Burlesque Bitters and even edible glitter.
“I experimented with many brands of rye when creating this cocktail, and Great Jones’ flavor profile consisting of vanilla, black pepper, and chocolate really complemented the spicy and sour elements of my recipe,” says McCormick, who continues to make the drink at his
Bushwick venue. “It adds a sophisticated richness of flavor that takes my cocktail to the next delicious level.”
As the search for the next Manhattan’s Manhattan begins in earnest, Great Jones — and VinePair — look forward to seeing what aspiring champions get up to this year. Because if there’s one drink that Great Jones whiskey truly belongs in, it’s a Manhattan.
“Great Jones is the quintessential Manhattan distillery,” Allan says. “So, if you’re looking to make the quintessential Manhattan, why not use whiskey from a Manhattan distillery?”
This article is sponsored by Great Jones Distilling Co.
