Gin vs Vodka (Martini)

[Marcus]

At first I couldn't stomach Gin, but after some, ahem, "practice"...I've totally acquired the taste for Gin.

 

[jamespowers]

Maybe it was just simplified into a mantini. The 50s considered the 30s a little bit fey, that is, when they considered them at all.

:arated:
Vermouth is frou frou.

 

[jamespowers]

At first I couldn't stomach Gin, but after some, ahem, "practice"...I've totally acquired the taste for Gin.

Well, there are some gins that I still can't stomach. Gilbey's being at the top of the list. After tasting that, I now know what bathtub gin was like.

 

[swinggal]

Gin.

That is all.

 

[D-503]

Not really. It's just slightly tacky. lol

D-503, where did you pick up the Noilly Prat and orange bitters concept?

I wish I had a good story behind it, but I had a bottle of Noilly Prat and I read in an old cocktail book that they used to add orange bitters to the drink.

It's actually quite good. The citrus of the twist and the bitters is balanced quite nicely by the Prat.

 

[SteveAS]

I get weird looks (and occasionally snooty service) when I go into a bar and order the following:

3 parts Gin (never rail, rarely Gordon's, usually Beefeater, occasionally Tanqueray, and at home Plymouth or Old Tom)

1 part French vermouth (preferably Noilly Prat)

Stirred

Dash of orange bitters in a chilled cocktail glass

Lemon twist

My kind of martini, though I usually use about one part vermouth to six parts gin. I like my martinis cold and strong (not watery), so I keep my gin and my glasses in the freezer.

One tip for you gentlemen and ladies who don't like much vermouth in your martini: use good vermouth! My regular is Vya, which adds a nice depth to a martini without adding the stank most vermouths add.

 

[Bustercat]

Plymouth with a moderate splash of vermouth. I like kalamatas or those round green greek olives. Sometimes a few capers, too.

If I'm drinking vodka, it's going to be a gibson.

My go to drink is a perfect manhattan, though.

 

[jamespowers]

I found this recipe lying around:

2 fluid ounces vodka
1 1/2 fluid ounces gin
ice cubes
2 twists lemon peel
4 pimento-stuffed green olives

Measure the vodka and gin into a cocktail shaker and add a generous scoop of ice cubes. Secure the lid and shake until the outside of the shaker becomes frosty cold. Strain into two martini glasses. Garnish each drink with two olives speared on cocktail picks and a twist of lemon.

You get both this way I suppose but uh not for me.

 

[jamespowers]

My kind of martini, though I usually use about one part vermouth to six parts gin. I like my martinis cold and strong (not watery), so I keep my gin and my glasses in the freezer.

One tip for you gentlemen and ladies who don't like much vermouth in your martini: use good vermouth! My regular is Vya, which adds a nice depth to a martini without adding the stank most vermouths add.

Noilly Pratt isn't that bad and not that much cheaper than Vya.
You are still getting it down to 6-1 though and that might not be too bad.

 

[Jack Scorpion]

I have never considered vermouth in a spray bottle before. I don't see why not.

Vodka martinis for me gotta be dirty. Wasn't the Bond version originally called a Vesper, not a "Martini"?

And what about those less distilled gins that retain some brown color? Are those disqualified from competition?

 

[Mav]

Gin. Dribble of vermouth. Dirty. Shaken, with two olives.
It's like a steak in a glass. In fact, I believe that's what I'll have for dinner tonight.

 

[Fletch]

Vodka martinis for me gotta be dirty. Wasn't the Bond version originally called a Vesper, not a "Martini"?

What happens in the 1953 book is that he starts off asking for a martini, then modifies it radically as the order goes on. Quoth Wikipedia:

The drink was invented and named by fictional secret agent James Bond in the 1953 novel Casino Royale.
"A dry martini," [Bond] said. "One. In a deep champagne goblet."
"Oui, monsieur."
"Just a moment. Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel. Got it?"
"Certainly, monsieur." The barman seemed pleased with the idea.
"Gosh, that's certainly a drink," said Leiter.
Bond laughed. "When I'm...er...concentrating," he explained, "I never have more than one drink before dinner. But I do like that one to be large and very strong and very cold and very well-made. I hate small portions of anything, particularly when they taste bad. This drink's my own invention. I'm going to patent it when I can think of a good name."
—Ian Fleming, Casino Royale
The novel goes on with Bond telling the barman, after taking a long sip, "Excellent ... but if you can get a vodka made with grain instead of potatoes, you will find it still better," and then adds in an aside, "Mais n'enculons pas des mouches."[1]
Bond eventually calls it The Vesper, named after the novel's lead female character, Vesper Lynd. A Vesper differs from Bond's usual cocktail of choice, the martini, in that it uses both gin and vodka, Kina Lillet instead of the usual dry vermouth, and a lemon peel instead of an olive. Although there is a lot of discussion on the Vesper, it is only ordered once throughout Fleming's novels and by later books Bond is ordering regular vodka martinis, though he also drinks regular gin martinis.

BTW, Kina Lillet is today known simply as white Lillet, the French aperitif.

Mais n'enculon pas des mouches amounts to "But let's not split hairs." It literally means doing something anatomically impossible to flies.
------------- >8 o O ( Yikes! )

 

[jamespowers]

Gin. Dribble of vermouth. Dirty. Shaken, with two olives.
It's like a steak in a glass. In fact, I believe that's what I'll have for dinner tonight.

A steak in a glass?
I want my Spicy Martini with all this Martini talk.

 

[jamespowers]

I have never considered vermouth in a spray bottle before. I don't see why not.

Vodka martinis for me gotta be dirty. Wasn't the Bond version originally called a Vesper, not a "Martini"?

And what about those less distilled gins that retain some brown color? Are those disqualified from competition?

My father taught me about the spray bottle for vermouth. I keep it in the refrigerator. They look like this:

 

[Jack Scorpion]

Sometimes I think the true measure of "holding your alcohol" is not spilling any of your fourth martini. The deep champagne goblet makes this a bit easier.

 

[Jack Scorpion]

My father taught me about the spray bottle for vermouth. I keep it in the refrigerator. They look like this:

This is wholly awesome.

 

[Mav]

A steak in a glass?
I want my Spicy Martini with all this Martini talk.

No kidding. I just got back from picking up gin and vermouth. I should have never read this thread.

 

[LocktownDog]

No kidding. I just got back from picking up gin and vermouth. I should have never read this thread.

Stop it. It was the right thing to do. Stand proudly, my friend. :eusa_clap

 

[SteveAS]

I found this recipe lying around:

2 fluid ounces vodka
1 1/2 fluid ounces gin
.
.
.
You get both this way I suppose but uh not for me.

It's not for me, either. The first time I heard of using both vodka and gin was in one of the Daniel Craig Bond movies, where he ordered a "Vesper martini," as mentioned above. In that gin is basically vodka with flavorings added, adding vodka to gin basically seems to me to just make for gin with very little flavor.

 

[jamespowers]

It's not for me, either. The first time I heard of using both vodka and gin was in one of the Daniel Craig Bond movies, where he ordered a "Vesper martini," as mentioned above. In that gin is basically vodka with flavorings added, adding vodka to gin basically seems to me to just make for gin with very little flavor.

Exactly. Like watered down gin.