The "perfect" Martini?

Moderators: mistah willies, NYDingbat, Judge, oettinger, Badfellow, Mr Boozificator, Bluto, Smatter Noguts, Patchez

What do you like to use in your Martini?

Poll ended at Mon May 26, 2003 9:45 am

Gin
9
56%
Vodka
7
44%
Grain Alcohol (you sick freak!)
0
No votes
 
Total votes: 16

User avatar
fdoosey
Drinking God's Good Scotch
Drinking God's Good Scotch
Posts: 2500
Joined: Thu May 08, 2003 1:12 pm
Location: West Jabip
Contact:

The "perfect" Martini?

Post by fdoosey »

I read the article about the perfect VODKA Martini, but our dear friends at MDM may have unknowingly opened a can of worms with us gin Martini purists. Not that a vodka Martini is bad by any means, but I stick with the probably arrogant view that gin is the proper ingredient for a Martini.

Now, it's probably not news to anyone that a Martini, for the ones who drink them, can be an intensely personal experience, and most of us have our own definitions of what a peroper Martini should contain. Mind you, this does not apply to specialized Martini variations such as a Saketini or a Cajun Martini, but to the classic clear potable we know and devour.

I want to know what all of my drunken brothers and sisters call a "proper" martini. Here's my ingredient list:

4 ounces Bombay Sapphire Gin
a small dash of dry vermouth (just enough to notice in the drink)
3 olives
a decent splash of the olive brine, to add a salty tang

Personally, I'm also a chilehead, so olives stuffed with hot peppers is a delight, but the brine needs to be from ordinary olives. I have a kick-@$$ list of 100 different Martini variants I'd share with you if only I had the time to put it in electronic form. The OCR on my scanner stinks.
http://www.sammichmen.com
Image

methfront: the man who wanted to steal a shopping cart of bowling balls and drop them from the back of a car down route 36 doesn't want to sow bitterness
fdoosey: No, he just wanted to have fun with a shopping cart of bowling balls.

UnkleLemmy
Boozing Like Bukowski
Boozing Like Bukowski
Posts: 4360
Joined: Mon Apr 07, 2003 10:52 am
Location: insert witty location here

Post by UnkleLemmy »

I'm definately a gin martini fan too. I like mine with Bombay Saphire also but I like mine with more vermouth.If I just wanted a glass of gin I'd order that. I hate olives though. I take mine with a lemon peel.
Savage: "Unkle Lemmy looks just like his avatar, and that is hawt. Also, he sends me a crate of bourbon every month and for this, when I die, he will inherit my castle in Savagonia, and my 72 virgins. (They are all good boys, and very hard workers.)"

User avatar
fdoosey
Drinking God's Good Scotch
Drinking God's Good Scotch
Posts: 2500
Joined: Thu May 08, 2003 1:12 pm
Location: West Jabip
Contact:

Post by fdoosey »

I'm definately a gin martini fan too. I like mine with Bombay Saphire also but I like mine with more vermouth.If I just wanted a glass of gin I'd order that. I hate olives though. I take mine with a lemon peel.

I've not tried lemon peel yet, not out of traditionalist snobbery, but simply because I generally don't keep lemons around the house. Clearly, mixing a lemon peel into a dirty Martini might not be advised...so allow me to ask, how does the lemon affect the flavor? I know with espresso, it takes the bitterness out some. But since I don't consider gin to be bitter (anymore), I'm curious how it comes out.

Cheers,

Frank
http://www.sammichmen.com
Image

methfront: the man who wanted to steal a shopping cart of bowling balls and drop them from the back of a car down route 36 doesn't want to sow bitterness
fdoosey: No, he just wanted to have fun with a shopping cart of bowling balls.

Palinka (RIP)
Moderator
Posts: 9790
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2003 7:29 pm
Location: In The Liquor Cabinet

Post by Palinka (RIP) »

This is the recipe I have always used:

First ensure that the Martini glass is chilled (the best way to do this is to keep them in the freezer. Make sure that the glasses are dry when putting them in the freezer).
Take your chilled Martini glass and pour a small amount vermouth into it. Swirl the glass to coat the inside of it evenly and dump the excess vermouth into your cocktail mixer. Replace the glass in the fridge or freezer if you live in a warm climate.
Add ice and gin, to the leftover vermouth in the cocktail mixer, then stir. When the gin is mixed with the vermouth, strain the liquid into your chilled glass. Twist a piece of lemon zest into the glass and wipe the rim of the glass with the lemon pulp. Add an olive, an onion or a combination of the two.
Repeat as necessary.

All measurements are done by eye.
"If I had all the money that I've spent on drink, I'd spend it on drink!"
"The trouble with internet quotes is that one can never be sure if they are genuine." - Abraham Lincoln
Kindly listen to this, please.
ドロンケン
ImageImage

3DrinksAhead
Lord of Benders
Lord of Benders
Posts: 282
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2003 11:41 am
Location: BOSTON
Contact:

Post by 3DrinksAhead »

gordons gin. chilled. open bottle of vermouth, put thumb over most of mouth of bottle, briskly shake bottle once. catch flying vermouth in shaker. add ice. add gin. strain into glass with 3 olives, large ones. put glass on table. Look glass straight in the eye. Say "remember when i said i'd drink you last? I lied". Drink it. mmmmmmmm......
"this is... wait. This... its.. jesus... hold on... shit... ok, this is neither the time, nor the... the place for... uh... do you have a cigarette?"

User avatar
fdoosey
Drinking God's Good Scotch
Drinking God's Good Scotch
Posts: 2500
Joined: Thu May 08, 2003 1:12 pm
Location: West Jabip
Contact:

Post by fdoosey »

Look glass straight in the eye. Say "remember when i said i'd drink you last? I lied".

Ah, would that be the "Commando Martini"???? 8)
http://www.sammichmen.com
Image

methfront: the man who wanted to steal a shopping cart of bowling balls and drop them from the back of a car down route 36 doesn't want to sow bitterness
fdoosey: No, he just wanted to have fun with a shopping cart of bowling balls.

UnkleLemmy
Boozing Like Bukowski
Boozing Like Bukowski
Posts: 4360
Joined: Mon Apr 07, 2003 10:52 am
Location: insert witty location here

Post by UnkleLemmy »

fdoosey wrote:I'm definately a gin martini fan too. I like mine with Bombay Saphire also but I like mine with more vermouth.If I just wanted a glass of gin I'd order that. I hate olives though. I take mine with a lemon peel.

I've not tried lemon peel yet, not out of traditionalist snobbery, but simply because I generally don't keep lemons around the house. Clearly, mixing a lemon peel into a dirty Martini might not be advised...so allow me to ask, how does the lemon affect the flavor? I know with espresso, it takes the bitterness out some. But since I don't consider gin to be bitter (anymore), I'm curious how it comes out.

Cheers,

Frank
It definately takes some of the bitterness out, especially since I use a more "traditional" amount of vermouth. I also just love lemons. I can add lemon to almost any drink.
Savage: "Unkle Lemmy looks just like his avatar, and that is hawt. Also, he sends me a crate of bourbon every month and for this, when I die, he will inherit my castle in Savagonia, and my 72 virgins. (They are all good boys, and very hard workers.)"

3DrinksAhead
Lord of Benders
Lord of Benders
Posts: 282
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2003 11:41 am
Location: BOSTON
Contact:

Post by 3DrinksAhead »

actually, that is what it should be called. Ive grown fond of spouting Schwarzenegger one-liners at my drinks. When you open a cold beer and the "steam" comes out, say "let off some steam, bennet". any time you do a rough shot, say "Crom...". And, while drinking, if anybody ever has the nerve to ask you "dont you ever want to do anything with your life?" or "what are your goals?", look em in the eye and say "To crush my enemies, see them driven before me, and to hear the lamentation of their women"
"this is... wait. This... its.. jesus... hold on... shit... ok, this is neither the time, nor the... the place for... uh... do you have a cigarette?"

3DrinksAhead
Lord of Benders
Lord of Benders
Posts: 282
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2003 11:41 am
Location: BOSTON
Contact:

Post by 3DrinksAhead »

oh yeah, one more. The BEST pick up line of all time, walk up to girl and simply say "Come with me if you want to live". It allways works.
"this is... wait. This... its.. jesus... hold on... shit... ok, this is neither the time, nor the... the place for... uh... do you have a cigarette?"

UnkleLemmy
Boozing Like Bukowski
Boozing Like Bukowski
Posts: 4360
Joined: Mon Apr 07, 2003 10:52 am
Location: insert witty location here

Post by UnkleLemmy »

If I ever have to leave an unfinsihed drink for any reason (like going to the bathroom), I always look at it sternly and say, "I'll be back"
Savage: "Unkle Lemmy looks just like his avatar, and that is hawt. Also, he sends me a crate of bourbon every month and for this, when I die, he will inherit my castle in Savagonia, and my 72 virgins. (They are all good boys, and very hard workers.)"

Barca
Moderator
Posts: 1191
Joined: Fri Feb 28, 2003 5:52 pm
Contact:

Post by Barca »

Or my favorite exchange:

"Jesus! Is that your liver?"
Me: "It's not a tumor."
Beer makes you feel the way you ought to feel without beer. - Henry Lawson

Uncle Sal
Inebriate Savant
Inebriate Savant
Posts: 848
Joined: Sat Apr 05, 2003 3:53 am
Location: Church of Whiskey and Pigpen

Post by Uncle Sal »

...Used to love lemons, but it led to 500 1:30 am 10 min phone messages to florida from santa cruz... oh, and am I possibly confusing my cocktail mixer with my stomach?
need a woman be good to me... won't hide my whiskey try to serve me tea...

User avatar
Pinky
Souse
Souse
Posts: 17
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2003 2:11 am
Location: Fullerton

Post by Pinky »

The botanicals in gin make it the preferred base for a martini. I like gin that has an intense profile, London style. Beefeaters is good, Portsmouth is better. The folks who make Maytag washing machines and Anchor Steam Beer in San Francisco also market a gin under the name Junipero. Junipero is a great gin.

I mix my martinis with vermouth called “Vya”. Vya is produced in Madera, California. It is very aromatic, with relatively (in comparison the gin) soft floral botanicals.

When I am at home I like olives. I like smaller, tender olives; the type that are never served in restaurants or bars. The olives at restaurants and bars are usually too large, course, tough and have little flavor. Therefore, at restaurants and bars I take my martinis with a twist of lemon. The citrus note that lemon imparts is pleasant.

I don’t shake my martinis. I read once that shaking the martini releases the lighter aromatic molecules present in gin and vermouth. The shaking results in a less aromatic drink. At one time, I stirred my martinis. Now I pulverize my martinis. I use a glass beer pitcher and a heavy glass stirring rod to prepare martinis. I add a big volume of ice relative to the gin and vermouth. I pound the gin, vermouth and ice mixture with the stirring rod until I get the amount of dilution desired. The action of pulverizing the ice creates a beautiful effect in the martini as it is strained into the glass. Pulverizing creates tiny bits of ice that float in the martini for about 30 to 60 seconds; during that period of time, when sight is still the primary sense with which the martini is being experienced, the ice crystals look like jewels as they swirl about.

I never could understand the preoccupation folks have with chilling everything that touches a martini. I never thought much of the idea. As my experience has developed, I’ve come to consider it wrong. A martini is not a shot of gin; rather, it is a cocktail. In my experience a necessary blending of vermouth, gin and water must occur. Water softens and rounds the flavors and aromas in a martini. Contact time on the ice chills the gin and vermouth and allows the gin and vermouth to melt a portion of the ice. If all of the ingredients are at freezing temperatures then melting doesn’t occur and the martini goes missing a necessary component. By my measure, a good martini is 3/5 gin and 2/5 water with vermouth to taste.

User avatar
Savage
Juicing Like Jackie
Juicing Like Jackie
Posts: 25434
Joined: Mon Apr 21, 2003 1:16 am
Location: All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go

Post by Savage »

Pinky, (we says, with our foreheads touching the ground) We're not worthy, we're not worthy, we're not worthy!

Have you any similiar thoughts on the proper mixing of other cocktails? If you do, you should write a book; the world needs your wisdom. Thanks for posting!
like tears in rain

Uncle Sal
Inebriate Savant
Inebriate Savant
Posts: 848
Joined: Sat Apr 05, 2003 3:53 am
Location: Church of Whiskey and Pigpen

Post by Uncle Sal »

used to drink (for 3 or 4 days in a row with minimal sleep) a block uphill from the Anchor brewery on Potreo Hill... many years ago. One of my favorite porters... if not the one, ...can't have just one...
need a woman be good to me... won't hide my whiskey try to serve me tea...

Post Reply