The High West Barreled Manhattan is made from two parts of High West's Double Rye! Whiskey, one part sweet red vermouth, and two dashes of Angostura bitters for every 2.5-ounce serving. It was then aged in a 2-year-old rye whiskey barrel for 3-6 months. The addition of the vermouth lowers the pH and the percent alcohol by volume - increasing the break down of the oak's hemi-cellulose, increasing the wood sugars that dissolve into the "cocktail" inside. Because a barrel "breaths", there's also some oxidation of the "cocktail." This mellows out the sharpness of the bitters and vermouth, making what we think is a darn fine elixir. We hope you enjoy tasting this as much as we did making it.