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L'Abattoir's head bartender Shaun Layton's cocktail the TorinoLAURA LEYSHON

At L'Abattoir, the three-month-old bar in Vancouver's Gastown, head barman Shaun Layton takes Manhattan, adds a touch of Northern Italy and shakes well to produce a take on a classic cocktail with nods to multiple centuries.

His version of the traditional Manhattan created in late-19th-century New York includes Antica Formula vermouth, a recipe developed in Turin in 1786.

"The molecular thing has come and gone," says the globetrotting mix master, voted Bartender of the Year by Vancouver Magazine. Today, he notes, "the focus is on crafting drinks with fewer ingredients, great technique and proper glassware." To make his oaky, faintly chocolaty Torino, combine all ingredients in a mixing glass, add ice, stir for 20 to 25 seconds, strain into a chilled deep coupe glass and garnish with a piece of lemon peel.

Recipe

1 1/2 ounces Martel VSOP cognac

1 ounce Carpano Antica Formula vermouth

1/3 ounce Campari

2 dashes Scrappy's Chocolate Bitters

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