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Pisco / Feature Articles

by
John Santa Cruz Manco

The Captain is born of the marriage between pisco quebranta and Vermouth Rosso. Vermouth (Cinzano was the first brand of Vermouth in Peru, it recently celebrated its 250th anniversary) comes from the master blending of wine, alcohol, sugar, herbs and spices of the world chief among which is “wormwood” –absinth or Artemisia-. In all of its versions, as an aperitif or as a cocktail either before or after a meal, it is best enjoyed well chilled (between 8° and 12° C). There are three types of Vermouth: dry (not very sweet and clear in color), red and white. The best known brands today in Peru Cinzano, Martini & Rossi, Ricadonna and Noilly Pratt (a French brand). Vermouth is not just an aperitif; it is in fact the most used ingredient in many cocktails from around the world. Cocktails such as the Gibson (gin, vermouth and ice), Vodka Tini (vodka, dry vermouth, ice), el ancient Negroni (gin, campari, vermouth rosso, ice) and the most famous of all, the Manhattan (whisky, vermouth rosso, Angostura bitters and ice).

Vermouth rosso officially arrived in Peru in 1859. “It was the Teodoro Hart Trading Company who officially imported this fortified wine from Turin. Using that date, it is very possible that the Captain could have been born that early. Although there are just recently traces, particularly verbal testimonials, which indicate that the cocktail became well known around 1925. This date coincides with the arrival of Italian immigrants to Lima and Callao who were fleeing the economic problems in Europe brought on by World War I (1914-1918). There is no way to know exactly who or where the Captain was invented, but what is certain is that it is linked to the Italians. It is said that in the second half of the XIXth century, this cocktail was drunk in these immigrant’s stores”, points out Roberto Meléndez, bartender at the Bar Inglés at the Country Club Hotel and owner of the Capitán Meléndez bar. “I started researching all about the Captain around 2002 when this grand cocktail had almost been forgotten. It was because I received a copy of an article written by a well know gastronomic journalist from the New York Times, about “The Peruvian Manhattan.” Honestly, it really got my attention and I decided to investigate it further,” says the bartender.

José Antonio Schiaffino, father of the chef, Pedro Miguel Schiaffino, owner of Malabar restaurant and advisor to many other restaurants, is another lover of research. He has published pieces such as The Origin of the Pisco Sour, The Captain and Pisco Manhattan and Cocktails in the United States: 1945-1973. He also indicates that finding the origin and who invented it is very complicated. “What happens with the Captain is that it is a very simple cocktail and that is where its greatness lies. You don’t need to know about cocktails to make it, as opposed to the Pisco Sour, which needs to be made using a cocktail shaker, but rather it is as simple as pouring out equal measures of pisco and vermouth. AS far as I was able to research, I was luck enough to meet with the seasoned bartender Mario Rosales, who told me that on 1936, when he was 15 years old, he went to work a the Bar Inglés at the Bolívar Hotel, as a dish washer, and in those days the Captain was being sold there and it was prepared by the then barman Cirilo Ortega,” recalls Schiaffino who points out that the Captain and the Pisco Manhattan should not be confused as they are two different cocktails.

According to Wikipedia the Manhattan “Is a classic cocktail made from whisky which is usually drunk as an aperitif and its origins come from the island of Manhattan, New York. It is said that this drink was first made at the Manhattan Club bar in New York at the beginning of the 1870s. In the 1930s and 1940s with the glamour of Hollywood movies, this cocktail became a very manly, famous and cosmopolitan drink. Ingredients: 2/3 good whisky, 1/3 vermouth rosso, a couple of drops of angostura bitters, and green olive or a cherry. Mix all of the liquids in a shaker with a few ice cubes, serve in a Martini glass and decorate with an olive if dry vermouth was used or a cherry if sweet vermouth was used.” At this pint one has to be careful since each bartender has his own way of preparing a Captain. “The Captain was always drunk as a shot, with the measures of one ounce of pisco quebranta and one ounce of vermouth rosso plus a drop of angostura bitters and that was all. Nothing more, nothing less. It is a simple and elegant cocktail,” Schiaffino added confidently.

One day before meeting with José Antonio Schiaffino at Malabar, we were able to speak with the historian Guillermo Toro-Lira, before he went back to the San Francisco Bay area where he lives. I told him I was investigating the history of the Captain and smiling he gave me the following scoop. “While going over the registry of the Morris bar, I found there was a comment written in on the 12th of October, 1924 by a Juan Bernales, from Pacasmayo, who arrived in Lima in April of 1918 and lived at Calle Orejuelas #627. His comment was this: The Captain is the best drink!...with an onion.” This is the oldest document making reference to the Captain as a cocktail. The next day, still excited about this discovery, we met with Schiaffino and he told us he had the menu from the Morris Bar dating a few years alter that comment made in the Morris Bar registry, and the Captain does not appear among the other cocktails listed, but the pisco sour is definitely there. It is possible that the Captain was on the menu and was removed. What is known is that the Captain was sold at the Morris Bar.