Also, we don’t find vermouth optional here. 2 to 1 or 3 to one I think are the ratios of gin to vermouth.
Wow, that’s way more than I’ve ever seen. Lessee, the mixology text (which is often wrong or outdated) calls for 2 oz. gin and 6 drops (approximately 1/8 oz) of dry vermouth. The Ultimate Cocktail Book (Ray Foley, pretty reliable even if he is a syncophant to Anheiser-Busch and Bacardi) doesn’t specify an amount but just says “to taste”, generally meaning a few drops. I generally use something more like 1/4 oz dry vermouth or slightly more (I use a decent quality vermouth, not the Lejon or Gallo…I’m not fond of M&R, either) but 3:1 or lower would be overkill, methinks.
But hey, it’s your drink. As long as you’re not manhandling Redbreast Pure Pot Still or Glenmorangie 12 Year by putting it over ice, far be it from me to interfere with your drinking pleasure.
Stranger
I think the whole question of the “correct” ratio rests on the answer to “Who taught you to mix a martini, and what era are they from?”
My father, for example, learned how to mix a martini in the 50s or 60s, and the ration that Dad uses to this day is 2:1, which as I understand from a couple of old cocktail books, was how they were made then. He likes it that way, and I’m not going to complain if Dad offers to mix us a few martinis. However, back in the 80s, I found I liked them a little drier. So, if I’m mixing a couple of martinis for my wife and I, I’ll make them a little drier than Dad’s–generally, using a 4:1 or 5:1 ratio.
Nowadays my Friendly Neighbourhood Barman will, if left to his own devices, use a few drops of vermouth. Too dry for my taste; I always have to tell him to add a little more vermouth, and not to measure it in drops.
In other words, martinis seem to be getting drier as years pass–from Dad’s 2:1 of the 50s and 60s, through my 4:1 or 5:1 of the 80s and 90s, to FNB’s “few drops” today. Doesn’t really matter in the end, as long as you get your drink the way you like it, but I just wanted to point out how martinis seem to be getting drier over time.
Whoops, that should be “ratio.” Martinis should never be rationed. 
I’ve seen places do this and always wondered why, since in my opinion it ruins the drink. I sit at my table and watch the bartender put everything inthe shaker and watch it sit at the drink prep area until the waitor gets around to bringing it to me a few minutes later. The ice has melted into the gin and you get all those shards of ice everyone here seems to like, but to me just act as a neon sign saying that they have messed up the drink. As I prefer gin martinits and like them stirred I seem to be in the minority here.
Comes down to that bastard James Bond. Everyone remembers “shaken not stirred”, especially bartenders, but no one remembers he was saying that about vodka martinis or vespers, not gin martinis.
Also, the movies got it backwards. Ian Fleming wanted Bond to order them “stirred, not shaken.”
Says you and Frank Sinatra. Everybody else should watch their consumption of these suckers–they go down way too easily. 
Part of my aversion to an excess of vermouth is that most bars stock the cheapest vermouth they can buy–the $1.99/bottle crap–and it can really give the martini a rank flavor if overdone. In fact, it seems to be nearly impossible to get drinkable vermouth in the US, as neither sweet, dry, or white vermouths are drank alone where. Ditto for palettable marsala or other fortified wines; the only stuff I’ve been able to find out of specialty importers is “cooking grade” wines that are dreadful.
I don’t know if better vermouth was available in the past, or if the '50s era lushes just had their tastes buds destroyed by Jello mold cuisine and unfiltered Pall Malls a day, but I shudder at the thought of putting that much M&R in a martini. Noilly Prat is passable and Cinzano is tolerable, but the really cheap stuff is worse than Thunderbird. Maybe that’s why I stick to my Black Bush or Jameson, neat.
Stranger
It has been a while since I ready Casino Royale, but I do recall Bond saying that his drink should be shaken. I also recall it not actually being a Martini, at least not by any definition I would accept. He calls it a martini and then tells the barman (or waiter?, my memory is a bit foggy) exactly how he wants it mixed and it has 4 or 5 different alcohols (including both Gin and Vodka).
Anyone out there know bonds recipe offhand?
It’s a vesper, as I mentioned above. He named it after the woman he was currently speaking to as I recall. Here is the recipe:
Bond…he was a ruthless killer and seducer of women, but one has to question his taste. Gordon’s gin? The cinematic Bond isn’t much better; I seem to remember him drinking Smirnoff vodka in a recent film.
I think I’d rather hang out with Simon Templar than James Bond. He had a better sense of humor, and no doubt a better taste in liquor.
Stranger
King Eider vermouth was quite good–so of course it’s not made any more. For second-tier good vermouth that’s still accessible, try Vya (it’s made by Andrew Quady).
I am just checking the coding here. I see Hunter’s entire post, along with the date of his post, name etc, as being contained in a text box that contains all of Stranger’s last post starting with my quote. Really weird.
All fixed now, thanks for the report. Looks like it was the quote coding wasn’t done right, and that somehow caused it.
This seems like an appropriate time to mention the Ogden Nash poem (I can’t find my Nash book right now, darn it) that claims the only speed in the universe faster than the speed of light is the speed with which a martini hits an empty stomach.
I’m goning to take a different approach on how to get those little flecks of ice in your drink.
Start with regular ice from the fridge, or a bag of purchased ice. not half melted ice! Add a 6 or 8 cubes, break in half with a ice mallet if you wish. Add booze and shake like hell for 15-20 seconds. Strain and pour.
Adding the booze to the very cold ice causes it to crack. The shaking causes it to fracture into smaller pieces. Some of these pieces will be tiny enough to pass through the strainer when you pour.
Are you sure about that? Harris Steakhouse in San Francisco is proud (quite justifiably so, I’m told, though I haven’t had it) of their King Eider martini.
I assume they’re still able to acquire stocks from somewhere. Or maybe they just have a huge reserve in the back, and they’re trying to stretch it as long as possible?
As sure as I can be without actually telephoning the vineyard for real-time confirmation. The King Eider web site is defunct; the vermouth isn’t listed on the Duckhorn web site; there are a bunch of other web sites that claim it’s no longer made; I can’t find it in brick & mortar stores any more; and the ecommerce liquor stores I’m familiar with don’t carry it any more.
I’m sure there are still a few unsold bottles floating around (just like I’m sure there are still a few unsold bottles of Tanqueray malacca gin around), but I don’t think any new supply is coming out. Of course, if you know where I could get either the vermouth or the gin, please let me know 'cuz I’d be incredibly grateful.
My guess is that the latter would be the case. I assume they heard it was being canceled, bought up a number of bottles, and only use it for customers who specifically request it.
Ask and I shalt deliver. I think I found a stock; I have another place I can check in about a week. Drop me an email; I think you’ve turned yours off.
Ask and I shalt deliver. I think I found a stock; I have another place I can check in about a week. Drop me an email; I think you’ve turned yours off.
Alternatively, if you feel like sharing, I’ll post the link here. Your call.
There was a really funny bit of dialogue on West Wing about this a few years back. It was the President talking about how James Bond always requested his Martinis “shaken, not stirred”, then went on to explain WHY you stir a martini, with a special spoon no less, so as not to break the ice. He then concludes by saying "He’s ordering a watered down drink. And he’s being snooty about it.
If anyone remembers the exact line, lemme know what it is please.
So, random question, the whole universe of gin on a microphone stand, where would Bombay Saphire gin be? I have a friend who likes to buy a bottle of this from time to time, but I think it is like drinking a pine tree (cool bottle though).
Oh, and as for weird drinking habits, though not martini related, I like to drink my bourbon with equal parts water. When a friend of mine noticed me doing it, he said “Hey, if you’re gonna water down good bourbon, at least use bottled water, instead of the grainy stuff we get from the tap in this town.”