Rob Roy

A blend, not a single malt. Something in the Famous Grouse or Monkey Shoulder range has enough malt character to stand up to vermouth without the peat smoke fighting it. Save the Islay bottle for a rinse in the glass if you want smoke, or drink it neat.

Essentially, yes, and the swap changes more than you'd expect. Rye pushes spice and pepper into the vermouth. Scotch brings cereal sweetness and a faint smoke, so the drink lands rounder and less sharp. People who find Manhattans aggressive often prefer this one.

Yes. Swapping the sweet vermouth for dry gives you a Dry Rob Roy, which is leaner and more austere, usually with a lemon twist instead of cherries. Half and half of each makes a Perfect Rob Roy. All three are standard, so order by name and a decent bar will know.

Not if they're good ones. A proper Luxardo or Amarena cherry bleeds a little dark syrup into the glass, and that sweetness plays against the malt. The bright red supermarket kind adds almond flavoring and food dye, and you'll taste both.

A classic Rob Roy calls for 60 ml (2 oz) Scotch whisky, 30 ml (1 oz) Sweet vermouth, 2 dashes Angostura bitters Angostura bitters. That single-serve spec scales cleanly — the recipe above converts it to oz and multiplies it for 2–4 drinks.

A standard Rob Roy is roughly 34% 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 Rob Roy is shaken. About 13 seconds with plenty of ice chills and dilutes it correctly.