2 oz Scotch
1 ds Bitters, Angostura (or Peychaud's)
1 Maraschino cherry (as garnish or)
1 twst Lemon peel (as garnish)
Instructions

Stir, strain, straight up, cocktail glass (or on the rocks), garnish with cherry or twist

Notes

Can also be made "perfect" with half sweet and half dry vermouth, or "dry" with all dry vermouth.

Cocktail summary
Picture of Rob Roy
2006 creative commons, Boca Dorada, Wikipedia
Posted by Dan on
Created by
Named eponymously after an operetta by Reginald de Koven.
Year
1894
Is an
authentic recipe
Curator
Not yet rated
Average
4 stars
(25 ratings)
YieldsDrink
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From other users
  • A rare case where sweet vermouth is preferred to Punt e Mes. Need to try with barreled Scotch.
  • I had my first Rob Roy at The Cigar Club in the Ritz-Carlton St. Louis.
  • Preferably with smokey whisky
  • 2 dashes bitters
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Comments

<br />It's really unfair to rate this drink. Use the same vermouth, but use an Islay vs a Highland scotch, and I guarantee you'll get two different rating scores. Likewise, you can use the same scotch but use two different high-quality vermouths and I guarantee you'll get two dififerent rating scores. There's no answer to the dilemma, I'm just bringing it to you're attention.

I suppose you can make the same comment about any drink, but the Rob Roy is particularly sensitive to this issue, simply because Islay scotches are so incredibly different in taste from the other Scotches, that it will profoundly affect rating scores. I hate the peated Scotches typical of Islay, and I love the incredibly smooth and refreshing taste of a Scotch from Hightland. What to do? I haven't a clue! Do you?


The Rob Roy tends to be made with an un-peated blended scotch. Most cocktails that don't specify are this way. The template for this particular cocktail's pretty forgiving & peat can be tasty here. But people who order this would be extremely unlikely to get it made with a peated scotch unless they asked for it.