Rob Roy No. 3 Recipe
A paler Rob Roy that splits the vermouth between dry and bianco, letting the Scotch show through with a light, floral sweetness.
- Category: Popular
- Glass: Old fashioned glass
- ABV: 27%
- Difficulty: Easy
Ingredients
- Scotch whisky60 ml (2 oz)
- Dry vermouth15 ml (0.5 oz)
- Vermouth bianco15 ml (0.5 oz)
How to Make It
- Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with ice.
- Stir until well chilled and diluted.
- Strain over one large ice cube in a rocks glass.
- Express an orange twist over the drink and drop it in.
Garnish
Orange peel
What it tastes like
The spirit is right out front and it hits hard.
The technique
Stirring. All-spirit drinks are stirred — shaking whips air into them and ruins both the clarity and the texture. Thirty to forty seconds in a mixing glass, the spoon tracing the wall. You are after the same ~20% dilution, just slower and under control.
Glass and ice
A heavy-bottomed, wide old fashioned glass. Wide enough for one large cube, which is the point: a big cube has less surface area, so the drink gets cold without getting watery.
Ingredient notes and substitutes
- Scotch whisky
- Scotch. Blends are soft and grainy, single malts have more character. Unless the recipe says Islay, picking a smoky bottle will throw the drink out of balance.
- Dry vermouth
- Dry white vermouth. Same rule as the sweet one: fridge, one month. When someone asks how dry a martini should be, this is the ingredient they are talking about.
- Vermouth bianco
- White but sweet vermouth — not to be confused with the dry one. It carries vanilla and chamomile, and can replace sweet red vermouth, though the drink stays pale.
The Story
A variation on the Rob Roy, the Scotch answer to the Manhattan that dates from the 1890s in New York; this version swaps red vermouth for two white ones.
Frequently asked questions
- How is a Rob Roy No. 3 mixed?
- It is stirred and served in an old fashioned glass.
- How strong is a Rob Roy No. 3?
- Roughly 27% ABV as served — a spirit-strength drink — sipped slowly, and it wants a glass of water beside it.
- Can a Rob Roy No. 3 be made without alcohol?
- Simply leaving the spirit out does not work — the body and the bitterness go with it. The 86 alcohol-free recipes in the catalogue are built to hit that balance from the start.
- Is a Rob Roy No. 3 hard to make?
- Easy. No bar kit required — a measure, ice and a jar will do.
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Alcoholic drink recipes are intended for those aged 18 and over. Please drink responsibly.