Hi, I'm TaarSirion (
Originally I wanted to start a series about cocktail groups and their definitions, but after going through the different groups and recipes I know of, I realized that there is no real basis on how to group cocktails.
Cocktails in a group can completely differ in their composition, even cocktails that share a common name can be totaly different. So I decided to take a different approach. I will look at the already established groups and within those groups at the cocktails and talk a little about them.
So at first we will cover the group of the Before Dinner Cocktails. Those cocktails, as the name suggests, are to be drunk before one eats.
Depending on the place you live in there might or might not be a difference between Before Dinner Cocktails and Aperitifs.
As for myself, I like to think of the Before Dinner Cocktails as a subgroup of the Aperitifs, because a glass of Aperol is an Aperitif , but not a Before Dinner Cocktail.
Why start with Before Dinner Cocktails, you might ask? Why not start with those fancy looking Tropical Cocktails?
The reason being, that Before Dinner Cocktails start the evening. In a good restaurant, or at a private party with a good host, you will (and should) always get an Aperitif (and that may be a Before Dinner Cocktail) before anything else.
Onto the next question you might ask yourself, what exactly are Before Dinner Cocktails?
Generally one can define them as dry alcoholic drinks to increase your appettite.
It's really important that they are not too alcoholic and/or sweet, or your appettite will be gone before the food is served.
Additionally they help lighten the mood, as you wait for your food.
But as you will notice in this and the following parts of the series, this definition is not very specific and the cocktails that are among this group, are counted to this group more because they established themselves in this group than actually meeting certain criteria.
And now for the main part today, we will take a look at one of the most reknown cocktails, the Martini.
But don't worry, it's not only the Martini, but also some of it's variations.
The Martini (Dry Martini)
The classical Martini, also known as Dry Martini, is a dry alcoholic drink, mixed with Gin and Dry Vermouth (and sometimes a bit of Orange Bitter or something similar). It is served in a Martiniglass (guess where its name comes from) with an Olive as topping. Traditionally the Martini is stirred in the Mixingglass and then strained into the Martiniglass. But there also is the option to shake it and then strain it, like a certain special agent.
At this point I like to share a little history about the Martini. Contrary to some rumors, it is actually unknown who invented it, but it is believed that it comes out of the USA.
A first written version is found around the 1880s (I found different sources stating it was in 1882 or 1888, so I just say it was in the 80s). The recipe changed a lot from the originial, or at least one of the first written versions. The ingredients were sweeter, because the destilation was far from perfect back then. So to decrease the burning from the liquor, Sweet Vermouth was added. As destilation became better, the drinks got dryer, with increased parts Gin. And at some point they switched from Sweet Vermouth to Dry Vermouth.
Finally I want to share the recipe with you, but first a little disclaimer:
! A recipe is always something subjective, meaning, there is no right or wrong way to create it. So don't take it to heart if the following recipes are not to your liking. !
That said here is the recipe I learned on how to create a Dry Martini:
6cl Gin
1cl Dry Vermouth
Topping: Olive
Preparation: Stirred in a Mixingglass and then strained into chilled Martiniglass.
Glass: Martiniglass.
Extra: If you like the old way, you can add a bit of Orange Bitter (2-3 dashes).
Gibson
Next up is the Gibson, which essentially is a Dry Martini, but instead of an Olive you use a Pickled Onion as topping.
Similar to the Dry Martini it is unknown who invented the Gibson.
Recipe:
6cl Gin
1cl Dry Vermouth
Topping: Pickled onion
Preparation: Stirred in a Mixingglass and then strained into chilled Martiniglass.
Glass: Martiniglass.
Extra: Never heard or read of added orange bitter. I personally think it doesn't suit the onion, but if you like orange bitter add a bit.
Dirty Martini
Then we have the Dirty Martini, which, again, is basically a Dry Martini, but with Olive Brine added to the drink. Which adds a salty note to the drink.
Recipe:
6cl Gin
1cl Dry Vermouth
~1cl Olive Brine
Topping: Olive
Preparation: Stirred in a Mixingglass and then strained into chilled Martiniglass.
Glass: Martiniglass.
Extra: Because of the salty brine you shouldn't add orange bitter.
50/50 Martini
So I found this recipe on this site: Liquor.com (you need to sign up to look at the recipes).
It's really interesting as it goes heavy on the Vermouth. So for all the Vermouth fans out there, this may be a drink you especially like.
Also because it uses an equal amount of Gin and Dry Vermouth, it's hard to actually declare it as a Martini. But for me it is a Martini.
Recipe:
3.5cl Gin
3.5cl Dry Vermouth
Topping: Lemon Twist
Preparation: Stirred in a Mixingglass and then strained into chilled Martiniglass.
Glass: Martiniglass
Extra: None
Sweet Martini
If you don't like the dry taste of a Dry Martini, but want a sweeter one, there is hope for you. The Sweet Martini.
Like its name suggests, it's sweeter than a Dry Martini. The difference here is that you use Sweet Vermouth instead of the Dry Vermouth.
Recipe:
6cl Gin
1cl Sweet Vermouth
Topping: Lemon Twist or Cocktail Cherry
Preparation: Stirred in a Mixingglass and then strained into chilled Martiniglass.
Glass: Martiniglass
Extra: None
Perfect Martini (Medium Martini)
Last but not least, there is the Perfect Martini. This is not the perfectly mixed Dry Martini, if you that is what you thought, rather it's a Martini with equal amounts of Dry and Sweet Vermouth.
I am not quite sure why it's named Perfect Martini, but if you think of the Dry and Sweet Vermouth as opposites, than it's like Yin and Yang and the middle in between both is just perfect.
Recipe:
5cl Gin
1cl Dry Vermouth
1cl Sweet Vermouth
Topping: Lemon Twist or Cocktail Cherry
Preparation: Stirred in a Mixingglass and then strained into chilled Martiniglass.
Glass: Martiniglass
Extra: None
The Composition:
Lastly I am going to share a bit about the composition of the Martini with you. A thing you may have noticed, all the recipes have around 7cl. Another thing you may have noticed is that the amount of Gin is larger or equal than the amount of Vermouth.
Why 7cl?
Well, first because of the look. It just is more pleasing to the eye if all the served drinks of the same group are filled to the same height. And second because they are Before Dinner Cocktails and shouldn't contain too much alcohol and they already have 7cl only liquor in them, that's a lot.
And why always more Gin than Vermouth?
Basically because the Dry Martini is on Gin basis and Dry Vermouth is adding only taste.
That means a Dry Martini is a Gin-Cocktail. So having more Vermouth than Gin would make it a Vermouth-Cocktail and then it's not a Martini anymore. That's why a Vodkatini is technically not a Martini, but in the end it doesn't really matter.
Then we have the preparation. Like I said in the beginning, you don't have to stirr and strain the Martini, shaking also works.
And for the glass, it just looks nice, the Martiniglass doesn't add to the taste, at least I don't think it does. So if you have none at hand, just pour it in another nice looking glass.
This concludes the first part of my series. Next we will be looking at Manhattans. But the next part won't be out for a week or so.
Please tell me if you liked or disliked it and what I should change for the future.
And because I probably won't post anything before New Year, I already wish you all a Happy New Year!
Edit:
As 
So I moved the recipe here to the end, so you can still look at it.
That makes the Vodkatini and it's variations its own group, but I will not include a post for them, because they are simply Martinis with Vodka instead of Gin.
Vodka Martini (Vodkatini)
Another way to make a Dry Martini is to substitute the Gin with Vodka. I personally wouldn't count the Vodkatini as a variation of the Dry Martini, because it has no Gin in it, but I still added it here because of its popularity. For the variations, just use the Martini variations and substitute with Vodka.
Recipe:
6cl Vodka
1cl Dry Vermouth
Topping: Olive Preparation: Stirred in a Mixingglass and then strained into chilled Martiniglass. Glass: Martiniglass. Extra: Again add Orange Bitter if it suites you.