In a staff report, the reason for shaking a vodka martini is that that method gets the drink really cold. Why not start with vodka that has been kept in a freezer and then stirring the drink? That way you do not have to get chipped ice in the drink.
My understanding is that you want that chipped ice in the drink along with the smallest amount of vermouth possible. Otherwise you might as well just drink a shot of vodka with an olive on the side.
That is how Martinis at my house are poured:
1 bottle of vodka, pour out a measure or two. Insert one garlic glove and several olives. Top off with vermouth. Place in freezer for one month.
When I want a martini, I take my martini glass from the freezer, take the martini bottle from the freezer - give it a couple of shakes, and pour into the glass. Two olives are added, and I drink away.
I want the chipped ice in mine. If I can get tiny slivers of ice glittering on the surface of the drink, I am a happy man.
Damn, that sounds good. I am not a big fan of the martini, but I may need to make myself up a bottle of that for the rare occasion when I am in the mood. The garlic and olives sitting in the bottle is genius.
Grandad taught me, and I will pass it on to my kids as well. It is nice ALWAYS having an ice cold martini waiting for me.
Watch it - I did over garlic one bottle in a “if ONE clove is good, I should put in 5!” moment of stupidity. Mind you, this is a level of stupidity that I repeat in my cooking all the time. THAT particular bottle turned into a source for vodka pasta recipes instead.
We always keep a bottle of Ketel One in the freezer for my wife’s martini urges. I’m going to modify Algher’s idea to her tastes (Dirty, and not that dry). Thanks!
Isn’t there something about how shaking oxidates it a bit?
Good warning. I would have probably thrown in more than just one with the same theory.
So you are thinking what, a clove of garlic, 5 or 6 olives and maybe 3 shots of vermouth for a 1 liter bottle of vodka? (I happen to have a bottle of Stoli at home that I wasn’t sure what I should do with.)
Sounds about right.
It’s worth pointing out that Ian Fleming’s James Bond smokes 70 cigarettes a day and lives for sharp intense sensations in food, alcohol, gambling, adventure and sex. The gourmet Bond with encyclopedic knowledge of wine and such is strictly a movie convention.
This is the way I learned it (and I’m a bartender). Shaking the martini puts more air into the drink, therefore making the martini a bit less strong to the taste. Stirring results in less air and therefore a stronger drink. Each way will get them relatively equally cold.
Not being a physics expert (or I wouldn’t be a bartender), I cannot say if this is true or not (over a short period I would think the air would return to the, well, air), but it definitely appears to make a difference with Cosmos and other martini derivatives of that sort.
Hey, at least there’s no loose talk about bruising the juniper berries, 'cuz there aren’t any.
Do potatoes bruise?
Ditto. This is the difference between a drinkable martini and a great martini.