Metropole

No, but XO is. Dry vermouth and two bitters will bury the tertiary notes you pay for above VSOP. A decent VS works, and a VSOP with real fruit and a little oak is the sweet spot. Armagnac swaps in cleanly and pushes it rustic.

That's the printed spec, and it's gentler than it sounds, since dry vermouth sits near 18% ABV and the finished drink lands around 25%. If it tastes slack to you, go 60 ml cognac to 30 ml vermouth for something closer to modern proportions.

Near enough. A Harvard takes sweet vermouth and usually a splash of soda, which makes it round and faintly cola-ish. Dry vermouth here leaves the cognac's fruit exposed and the finish short. Same spirit, opposite direction, and the bitters do more work.

Orange alone leaves it bright and a little short at the finish. Angostura alone gives you clove and bark with no lift at the top. Together they cover both ends, which is why the period recipes call for both. Some older printings specify Peychaud's rather than Angostura, which pushes the whole thing toward anise.

A classic Metropole calls for 45 ml (1.5 oz) Cognac, 45 ml (1.5 oz) Dry vermouth, 1 dash orange bitters Orange bitters, 1 dash Angostura Angostura bitters. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

A standard Metropole is roughly 28% ABV once mixed (before ice melt softens it further). That makes it spirit-forward — closer to a Martini than to a beer, so sip it slowly.

A Metropole is shaken. About 13 seconds with plenty of ice chills and dilutes it correctly.