Lendler has another good creation myth, this one more grammatically precise, for the Rob Roy:

The Rob Roy came about with the debut of the Broadway show Rob Roy, in 1894. Back then, it was a popular pastime to create a new drink in honor of every Broadway opening. But in this case, the bartender may have been a bit of a wise-ass.

Rob Roy, the show, was written by Henry Louis De Koven, a mediocre talent whose songs were famous for being thinly veiled rip-offs of famous works. Robin Hood, his box office hit in 1891, was dubbed Robbin’ Ludwig by the critics.

Thus “Rob Roy,” the drink, is a thinly veiled rip-off of a Manhattan, simply replacing the rye with Scotch in honor of the show’s Highland hero.

My maternal grand-uncle, Commodore Angus McCulloch, Royal Navy (Ret.), feels the substitution of Scotch for rye was simply the rectifiction of Mrs. Churchill’s grave mixological error. Had we the bartender’s name I feel certain the Commodore would do something to honor his memory. He does drink several Rob Roys each night — perhaps that is tribute enough.

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