Doc Pepe Cuvée Reserve Manhattan Cocktail
At Doc Pèpe’s “Lab” in Monterey, California, Cellar Master Christian Pèpe, known as Doc Pèpe, blends classic cocktails in carefully selected oak barrels where they are allowed to mellow and mature. These Single-Barrel cocktails are prepared according to the classic recipes and are aged in oak barrels based on the flavors of their previous contents.
The “Cuvee Reserve” Manhattan Cocktail is made according to the classic recipe using a house made vermouth, bitters, and American whiskey. It’s blended in an imported Tawny Port cask and allowed to mellow, which adds flavors of vanilla, chocolate, charred oak, and red wine to each batch. The barrels are never completely emptied, so each bottling contains traces of every previous batch, creating a complex and rich flavor profile.
