Ask a Bartender: What Makes a Cocktail ‘Perfect’?

’’‘There are few things better than ordering a cocktail, taking the first sip, and discovering that it has been made exceptionally well. Perhaps the bartender nailed the ratio of citrus to sweetener or maybe the temperature of the Martini you’ve been craving for hours is just right. Sometimes, a cocktail just hits the spot. One might even be inclined to describe it as perfect.

But rather than being a descriptor for a drink that’s been made flawlessly, “perfect” actually means something entirely different in the context of cocktails — and it’s reliant upon one specific ingredient. To find out more about what makes a cocktail perfect, VinePair spoke with bartender Cheyenne Paydar of Monkey Thief in New York City.

“A perfect cocktail is traditionally a stirred cocktail using equal parts sweet and dry vermouth as the modifier,” Paydar explains. “In certain cocktails, like the Martini and Manhattan, where solely dry and sweet vermouth are used, respectively, splitting the vermouth with its counterpart gives it the moniker ‘perfect.’”

In the case of a Perfect Manhattan, rye whiskey and Angostura bitters are mixed with equal parts dry and sweet vermouths, while the standard Manhattan spec calls for simply sweet vermouth. By splitting the vermouths 50/50, the Perfect Manhattan is slightly less sweet than its counterpart, delivering some more pronounced rye spice notes.

As Paydar argues, the “perfect” terminology is a product of a previous bar culture, so he understands why some younger drinkers may believe it to be a descriptor of taste. “In general, I don’t believe the average guest under 35 knows that ‘perfect’ is in reference to measurements rather than quality,” he says. “When I first started bartending, if someone ordered a Manhattan, I was to ask them ‘Up or on the rocks?’ ‘Orange twist or cherry?’ and ‘Do you want it perfect?’ This prerequisite is generally no longer in the exchange.”

But what about cocktails that don’t call for vermouth in the first place? Can guests order those to be made perfect as well? According to Paydar, it’s not a simple yes or no.

“We exist in an era where endless riffs on riffs take classics so far they at times end up unrecognizable. Is it still a Martini if I don’t use gin? Or if I sub the vermouth for different modifiers?,” he says. “The issue of ‘perfection’ is who gets to decide? Sweet and dry vermouth act as opposite ends of the spectrum while remaining in the same category. How do we determine which amari, when split and blended, are considered perfect together? Which liqueurs? Which aperitifs?”

Because there is no authority surrounding this aspect of cocktail creation, Paydar says that the “perfect” family of cocktails can be defined by their ratios. Rather than featuring split vermouth, a perfect cocktail can, in theory, be any stirred drink that features 2 ounces of spirit and a half-ounce each of two modifiers. As he argues, ““t becomes more represented by structure than specific ingredients.”

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