Just over two weeks ago, Smith debuted its fall menu, and it included a specialty cocktail list. Why was I surprised? Though it’s never really occurred to me to stray far from the Allagash tap at Smith, I’ve always been aware of the bottle collection on the backbar. What did I think they were doing with three types of rye whiskey? Decorating?

“A lot of people think of us as just a beer bar,” said Orion Keith, the bartender who created the new menu. Keith started out at Oddfellows (both restaurants are owned by Linda Derschang), and says that bar was having success with their cocktail program, so they decided to roll out something similar at Smith. Keith says he is a newbie to the cocktail scene, he previously worked at Hopvine and Latona Pub. Both of which are in fact just beer bars. He credits his tasty mixers to bartenders around Seattle who were eager to help him learn.

I ordered the Smith Manhattan ($9): Old Overholt rye, Carpano Formula Antica (an Italian sweet vermouth), and 2 dashes of orange bitters. The twist is of course the Carpano—made from red wine, it is robust and well-rounded, approximately 50 times more tasty than the typical old vermouth you’re getting in a Manhattan. As promising as the ingredients were, the moment our waitress walked away I wished I had ordered Allagash. I am super finicky about Manhattans—when they’re wrong, I can’t even drink them. But it was perfect, the best one I’ve had since I can remember.

There are five other specialty cocktails on the list. I think next time I’ll try the Cardinal 75 ($8), a play on a French 75 using brandy, as was done in the 30s, 40s, and 50s, per Keith. It’s Calvados, simple syrup, lemon, triple sec, and champagne. Rittenhouse fans will be psyched to see a sour using the 100 rye, with orange curacao, lemon, and Peychaud’s bitters.

One more fun fact before I peace out of this post: The Sara Smoke ($9) (Plymouth gin and averna with a scotch wash) was named after a bartender at Quinn’s who helped Keith develop it. He couldn’t remember her last name.