"Bring me an elementary martini, " she said.
The waiter raised his eyebrows. "Madam?"
"Ice in a glass, " she said. "Olive on ice. Tanqueray gin over olive. Then--are you getting this?"....
"Yes, madam."
"Then," she said, "you take a bottle of vermouth--any brand--and hold it against the glass. Then you put the vermouth back on the shelf and bring the glass to me. 'Kay?"
~fromThe Talisman
by Stephen King
(I'm from Maine. Did you really think we'd get this far WITHOUT a Stephen King quote? For shame!)
So, anyway, this is how many people consider the fit state of a martini. When my mate and I first lived together, we shared stories about our parents. (Nope, you're not getting any of mine. Sorry.) One of my fave stories was about how his parents had a special dinner about once a week where they had steak and martinis together. (Considering the fact they had seven kids altogether, I thought it was very sweet that they went through the trouble of having one special night for themselves.) Our first xmas together, I gave him all the makings for what I understood, at the time, consisted of a genuine martini.
1 shaker
1 bottle of Tanqueray Gin
1 bottle Martini & Rossi Vermont
Ice
(Let's not forget, in this process, my abject adoration of James Bond...who is a strong proponent of the VODKA martini...but I digress....)
My understanding is that REAL martinis consist of gin and just a HINT of Vermont (vermouth, I KNOW...but you KNOW me...I HAVE to mess with it!)
When I began my quest for the perfect martini, I tried a lot of really disgusting concoctions. I won't bore you with the recipes, but suffice it to say for several months, I was pretty sure I'd never be a martini girl. Until...
So, here's the thing: I used to drink gin and tonnicas with Tanqueray Gin (which I still recommend for gin and tonnicas). However, for martinis, I was not happy with this formula. Someone suggested I try the lovely Bombay Sapphire and suddenly
BAMMM!!!!
I understood. I knew that Vermont (Vermouth) was just a bit player in the major picture, but the gin made ALL the difference. I indulged in beautiful sapphire martinis until that auspicious day when I discovered that there were even MORE interesting gins than Sapphire...
...(all genuflect..)
Just look at this beautiful, unique bottle and TELL me...
you're not intrigued???
Of COURSE you are!
So, once I tried Hendricks, I was hooked. Til this day, my fave GENUINE GIN martinis are thusly concocted:
3 jiggers Hendricks
1 jigger Vermont
3 cubes ice
...shake and serve with THREE martini olives (not those pathetic grocery store olives that should be mashed into pig feed.
I was content with this recipe for some time
UNTIL
I considered that, one of my heroes, James Bond (...I know...how UNFEMINIST! of me) drank VODKA martinis.
I was perplexed. Vodka doesn't sport the exquisite fragrance of gin. In fact, Vodka emits little olfactory essence at all.
However,
When one TASTES vodka...GOOD vodka...a veritable bouquet assaults the senses. After several un-scientific dabblings with varied brands of this auspicious liquor, I narrowed down my search to three brands, about which, I had received the strongest recommendations:
Finlandia (from *gasp!* Finland)
Stoli (from Russia...the motherland of vodka)
Ketel One....Dutch Vodka....believe it or not...most recommended by current and former tarbenders.I recruited my mate to administer a blind taste test. The results were as follows:
-Finlandia - Floral scent and flavor, nice finish, but a little perfumy
-Stoli - sort of sweet with a kickass finish, like you did something wrong and needed to be punished
Ketel One - perfect blend of sweet and dry, with a clean finish
MY PERFECT MARTINI RECIPE:
Try it...come back and tell me what you think:
Classic Gin Martini:
3 jiggers Hendricks
1/2 jigger Tribuno dry Vermont
3 cubes ice, and shake
3 Divina citrus stuffed oliveSaketini
3 jiggers Ketel One Vodka
1 jigger dry Sake
3 ice cubes
3 Divina citrus stuffed (0r any citrus stuffed olives)
Cheers!!!
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