On Föhr, Everyone’s Got a Bottle of Manhattans in the Fridge
On the tiny German island of Föhr, the Manhattan “belongs at every occasion, whether funeral, baptism, birthday party, or simply friends coming to visit,” says Jan Hinrichsen, owner of Hinrichsen’s Farm Distillery, which sits on the idyllic North Sea destination in the Wadden Sea National Park.
The 8,000 or so residents of the island, most of whom belong to the officially recognized Frisian minority group with its own language, are absolutely enamored of the American cocktail. But their version has a twist: The Föhr Manhattan contains equal parts whiskey, sweet vermouth and bianco vermouth—closer to a Perfect Manhattan than a classic Manhattan—and it’s garnished with a garish red cocktail cherry. The light, sweet recipe has been a celebratory staple since its introduction at the Föhr wedding of two Frisian Americans in the 1960s, illustrating the deep cultural connection between Föhr and New York City, to where thousands of Frisians emigrated in the 1800s and early 1900s in search of work after their lucrative whaling industry collapsed.
No one quite knows how the Manhattan became the Föhr Manhattan, though the transition did make the outcome lower-alcohol, cheaper and easier to make ahead with no measuring. It’s perfect for the aperitif role it holds. The brands used are the only ones that would have been widely available on Föhr in past decades: Canadian Club, Jim Beam or Jack Daniels for the whiskey; Martini Rosso and Bianco for the vermouths. “The recipe differs from village to village,” says Hinrichsen, and every household has its slight adjustments, such as adding a splash of cherry juice or a dash of Angostura bitters in a callback to the original Manhattan. Nowadays, hyperlocal versions are making waves too.
During a visit to relatives in New York’s Hudson Valley in 2017, Hinrichsen was inspired by Hillrock Estate Distillery to add value to his farming operation, which dates back to 1630 and hasn’t gotten any easier to sustain over the years. He and his family now operate one of the world’s few single-farm estate whiskey distilleries, offering spirits that are beautiful on their own, but also fit into the unique take on the Föhr Manhattan served at their farm restaurant. Hinrichsen’s products are higher-proof, so he dials the whiskey back and makes up the difference in vermouth.
Despite how easy it is to make the Föhr Manhattan at home—“The Manhattan is premixed in a bottle in every Föhr fridge,” says Hinrichsen—ready-to-drink (RTD) versions exist as well. “A Manhattan is usually premixed and rarely prepared live—we drink too much of it for that,” says Lenz Roeloffs, director of wine and spirits production for Waalem, a winery and distillery that grows some of its own grapes on the island. Waalem previously sold an RTD Föhr Manhattan using its own light, Danish-inspired rye and red and white vermouths produced with estate grapes; the distillery is preparing to relaunch the product soon.
Jörg Meyer, the owner of Hamburg cocktail bar Le Lion and inventor of the famous Gin Basil Smash, couldn’t believe it when he heard about the Föhr Manhattan. “Fuck off, you never drink Manhattans on this small island for farmers!” he said to a regular at his bar about 15 years ago when she shared the story of her hometown’s signature cocktail. Once she set the record straight, he couldn’t stop thinking about the drink. Several years later, at the now-closed Boilerman Bar Eppendorf, he hired a bar manager who was the perfect accomplice to help him spread the joy of the regional Manhattan to the mainland: Arne Lübcke, a Föhrer.
“Arne told me the same thing as my regular: The Föhr Manhattan is a party drink, served as an aperitif in little glasses in the afternoon before weddings and such,” says Meyer, “but we can make it serious.” At Boilerman, which focused on American whiskey, they would stir and serve a Föhr Manhattan over ice to order. Lübcke would reach for two parts rye or a bold bourbon like Wild Turkey and one part each of Bèrto’s Ross da Travaj red vermouth and Aperitiv dla Tradission white vermouth, reducing the sweetness and bringing the drink even closer to a Perfect Manhattan. “It was two freaks doing cocktail history, making a story out of a fun tradition. It became quite a thing,” Meyer says.
Now, Lübcke has returned to the island, where he runs the Hotelbar Hygge at Upstalsboom Wyk auf Föhr, a fancy Nordic-inspired spa hotel on the beach. Here, the Föhr Manhattan “must be served classic” to meet customer expectations, Lübcke says, though he stirs a single serving over ice to order and serves it in an elegant, stemmed Zwiesel whiskey nosing glass, splitting the difference between archetypal and modern. Even so, he always keeps some bottles batched in the back office, because “some evenings you simply can’t keep up with the demand.”