51296 Tue Aug 20 17:23:24 -0700 2002 26 2 Los Angeles Area 0 260474 The annual New Yorker food issue will be on the stand for a few more days. Worth the purchase if you don't already receive it. Nice articles about martinis too. Of course, the author gets it all wrong. =) Judi's Perfect Martini Equipment: Glass: The size of the glass is very important. It should hold no more than 2-3 ounces at maximum capacity. Avoid at all costs the current "martini" glasses on the market. They tend to hold 6-8 ounces which will make you a very poor dinner companion. Vintage cocktail glasses or small modern glasses are the best choice. Riedel makes a decent one if you can't find anything more festive. If you want something special, the Waterford Lismore pattern has a beautiful little cocktail glass that also works nicely. It was introduced in the 20s. Rinse glass with water and chill in the freezer for 10 minutes. If you glass is very delicate, you can place in the fridge for 30 minutes. Martini Shaker (shaker, not something with a stick): Metal keeps things cold. Rinse with water, add six ice cubs, and chill in freezer for 10 minutes before using. Components: I prefer Bombay Sapphire but respect the Beefeater and plain Bombay drinker. Tanqueray is to be avoided as is most other gin. Remember: bad vodka can be hidden, bad gin cannot be. Vermouth is Noilly Prat, if you can find it. Olives, are green, fat, and pimento stuffed. They are speared with a decorative toothpick. The guy at the Hollywood Farmer's market has a nice selection. Lemon, on a very hot day has a certain appeal. Use a Microplane on the lemon over the drink. The oils are released and the small pith-less grated bits are pretty. Adding a pickled onion gives you a Gibson and adding olive juice makes it "dirty." Both are unfortunate traditions. Verbiage: Martinis are not a type of drink. Martinis are made with gin, a small portion of vermouth, and an olive, only. A "vodka martini" does not exist. Never use those words together! Asking for a "vodka martini" is like asking for beef burger without the beef. Process: Measure gin in cold glasses and add to shaker. Add 1/2-1 teaspoon vermouth. Shake it as if your life depends on it. A great martini is almost too cold to drink. If it becomes warm, throw it out. Warm gin is awful. Advanced: Train your spouse in your technique. Become amazed that he or she makes better martinis than you do. Ask him to make them while you sit on the couch and read. Local establishments with superior martinis: (To combat engrained bad habits, always specify extra-cold, extra dry martinis when you order.) Taylor's Dan Tanas Campanile (minor complaint: glass is too large) Frankie's (Italian place on Melrose) The Bar at the Bel Air Hotel (benefits from dress code) Tue Aug 20 17:23:24 -0700 2002 0 JudiAU 1 260475 Further martini hint. As a holiday gift last year my wife bought me a metal shaker (at Restoration Hardware, I believe) that comes with one of those chemical coolant sleeves you keep in the freezer. This shaker is brilliant and trumps all. Keeps your martinis icy cold. Get one. By the way, I agree with the above post about venues that mix a good "marty," particularly Taylor's and Campanile. But what do I know? I often take it with vodka. Special note to Martini Nazis: the original martinis were practically all vermouth with a whiff of gin. Is that what you really want? Enough of this over-orthodox crap--you know where that got us in Afghanistan. It's only taste. In some areas there can be progress. Tue Aug 20 17:31:13 -0700 2002 260474 0 Lord Lipitor 2 260506 I am not going to respond to the Nazi reference. First, I think it trivializes the Nazi regime and it is insulting to the memory of people who died at the hands of the Nazis. Second, I really don't think it is an appropriate comment on a website devoted to the pleasure of the table. It seems to me that the precise determination about what makes one dish or drink superior and the sources to find such perfection is reasonable fodder. Finally, I well aware of the proportions of earlier martinis. As I understand it, the vermouth was added to disguise the taste of bad bathtub gin. Gin is purer and tastes better now and is therefore allowed to shine in the cocktail. But my percentages are based on my preference and I respect other proportions. A martini made with a great deal of vermouth is still a martini. But a martini cannot be constructed without gin and vermouth. To quote my husband: ordering a large glass of cold gin makes you a drunk. Ordering a martini, carefully prepared, and served at a precise temperature makes you a connoisseur. It is all in the details. Wed Aug 21 15:42:23 -0700 2002 260475 0 JudiAU 3 260517 We wished you'd followed your impulse not to comment. Please keep your postings on-topic about food. Judge chow, not other posters or their language. Use our forum to broadcast your chow opinions, not your language opinions. We've deleted two flames already. Any more off-topic comments in this thread (pro or con) will be deleted in the interest of keeping discussion chowcentric. Wed Aug 21 17:11:04 -0700 2002 260506 2 The Chowhound Team 3 260552 Judi, sorry if I offended. Of course I intended my Nazi reference in the spirit of Seinfeld ("The Soup Nazi"), not Leni Riefenstahl ("The Triumph of the Will"). But I certainly agree with The Chowhound Team that we should give it a rest. Thu Aug 22 12:17:50 -0700 2002 260506 0 Lord Lipitor 2 260509 Amen! Wed Aug 21 15:52:03 -0700 2002 260475 0 Dave Tseng 2 260570 Does your shaker have a threaded top? I am forever twisting my wrists off getting the top and bottom to unsuction with the smooth-edged kind. place to purchase a stainless steel screw-top shaker anyone? while i miss bob burns' martinis and gimlets(so icy cold!), hms bounty and musso's are still pouring some great ones. Thu Aug 22 16:22:50 -0700 2002 260475 0 petradish 3 260585 You are absolutely right and I have should have mentioned them. I always forget Musso's because they close so early and HMS does a fine job as well. Thu Aug 22 19:34:33 -0700 2002 260570 0 JudiAU 3 260590 Unfortunately it does not have a threaded top, but it does have one of those little strainer gizmos at the end which comes off easily and makes pouring simple (and let me assure you I'm no Rocky Marciano). I checked the bottom of the shaker and the brand name is "Super Chill." Having had an embarrassing number of cocktail shakers in my life, metal and glass, this is definitely the one for me. By they way, agree on Musso's martinis of course and I would add a new venue tried just last night-- L'Ermitage Hotel bar in Bev Hills. We asked for them dirty and got them dirty with three olives. And big, served with those little side pony bottles just the way they do in Musso's. I would concur that once you get to that second helping the martini isn't that cold, but who can really tell the difference?. As Dorothy Parker would say, by that time you're under the table... or was it under the host? (Maybe that was the THIRD martini.) Thu Aug 22 20:40:57 -0700 2002 260570 0 Lord Lipitor 4 260640 thanks for the l'ermitage tip, i will check it out. beverly hills can be an interesting place to have a drink--trader vic's springs to mind. love those fresh gardenias in the scorpion for two. Fri Aug 23 18:50:40 -0700 2002 260590 0 petradish 4 263384 The Dorothy Parker ditty is... I like to have a martini, Two at the very most. After three I'm under the table, After four I'm under my host. Fri Feb 07 20:56:06 -0800 2003 260590 0 Louis 1 260476 I'm assuming many of you read Calvin Trillin's drop dead funny piece on the wine tasting at UC Davis in which blindfolded participants couldn't even tell the difference between red and white wine. Mr. Trillin was always a national treasure in the literary department, but now he has saved us all a pack of money. I don't know about you, but from here on in I'm doing all my wine-buying at the bargain bins at Trader Joe's and Greenblatt's. I'm even considering giving up my five-year place in the online queue at Araujo Vineyards. Tue Aug 20 17:37:36 -0700 2002 260474 0 Lord Lipitor 2 260521 Think of all the Thai All-American burgers you could buy with the savings from your ditched Araujo allocation! Sure, you'd die early, but VERY happy. Wed Aug 21 17:41:56 -0700 2002 260476 0 Kriss Reed 1 260481 Judi, lovely post. A paean to the martini. I was really into vitamin M, (and I don't mean folic acid) when I was a young man and could get up the next morning and deal with the after effects. Now it is a different story. One of my best friends from college had a father who made wonderful martini's. It was wonderful to taste, but even more so to watch him make them. An artist with the shaker. He always reminded me a bit of Sean Connery as James Bond. Can I ask what is the reason you dislike Tangueray for your martini's? When I was into martini's I drank and enjoyed it quite a bit. Wed Aug 21 09:54:14 -0700 2002 260474 0 WLA 2 260507 I just perfer Bombay Saphire in a martini. I think the tast is more refined when drunk plain. I much prefer Tanqueray in a gin and topic and find the Saphire insipid. Gin and Bitter Lemon is one of my absolute favorites. Have you had it? Common throughout the UK, usually produced by Schwepps, difficult to find on the West Coast. We were stuck buying it from the British import shops in glass bottles, $2 per serving. Finally found a good source for it at the Beverage Warehouse in Marina Del Ray. Even more refreshing than a G&T. Wed Aug 21 15:49:21 -0700 2002 260481 0 JudiAU 3 260525 I have had it in the UK, but not here. For many years after my martini madness I drank nothing but G&T's. Now I tend to have beer, usually a Sierra Nevada ale, or if they have a light and dark on tap I have them do a half and half if they are willing. Wed Aug 21 18:35:18 -0700 2002 260507 0 WLA 1 260491 Wow! I can't wait to follow your instructions tonight. Also, Trader Joes stocks Noilly Prat. Wed Aug 21 12:54:47 -0700 2002 260474 0 Kungfugirl6 1 260537 A great post. An alternative method of construction , especially suited to rapid mixing for guests: pour a teaspoon or so of vermouth in a well chilled glass, swirl it around, and dump it in the sink (or a silver dump bucket) as ostentatiously as possible - what sticks to the glass will be just the right amount; pour in 1.5 oz well chilled gin; add cold olive - no mixing required. (If this is too concentrated for your taste, stir or shake the gin with ice before pouring it.) Also, Tanqueray gin makes a great Martini - Bombay Sapphire has too much pepper. Wed Aug 21 23:47:17 -0700 2002 260474 0 Griller141 2 260544 The best Martini I have ever had was made by Gilberto Preti, bartender at the Dukes Hotel in St. James, London. This man is a true master - you haven't had a Martini until he's made one for you. Many discerning conoisseurs consider Gilberto's the best in the world. Judging from all of the Martinis I've experienced so far, I agree. Gilberto's presentation is worth the visit to the Dukes for a Martini alone - he wheels a cart topped with a white cloth and silver tray holding the gin, vermouth, a fresh lemon and the Martini glass. His gins of choice: Tanqueray, Bombay Sapphire and Glenhalls. Every time I've asked him to choose the gin that he felt made the best Martini he's always poured Tanqueray. While I generally prefer my Martini shaken, he simply keeps the gin in the freezer. Scroll all the way to the bottom of this link for his thoughts and recipe. Cheers! The old-school bartenders at the Formosa used to make a great genuine Martini years ago, but none of the old-timers seem to be around these days. Link: http://www.observer.co.uk/foodmonthly/story/0,9950,502694,00.html Thu Aug 22 04:55:47 -0700 2002 260537 0 Chris G. 3 260568 The American Bar in Paris has a wonderful English bartender who makes the most wonderful cocktails, including a martini, sigh, better than the husbands. Conversly the the small deco bar at the Lainsbourgh, which is staffed by Italians, makes the best in London. And finally, the King Cole Room at the St. Regis also makes a perfect martini, in the perfect size glass. Thu Aug 22 15:43:56 -0700 2002 260544 0 JudiAU 4 260572 Salvatore Calabrese, head bartender at the Lainsborough, used to be a bartender at the Dukes Hotel and learned how to make a Martini from Mr. Preti. I've had Martinis made by both, and I think Preti's has a slight, if subtle, edge. Both are great - but look who Calabrese learned from. I also prefer the atmosphere at the Dukes over the Lainsborough's "library" of fake books. One other note, Calabrese is generally celebrated for his vodka "martinis." Here is a link with more info on Mr. Calabrese. Cheers! Link: http://www.mywestend.co.uk/westend/celebs&gossip-localfaces.htm Thu Aug 22 16:50:33 -0700 2002 260568 0 Chris G. 5 260594 =) I appreciated the quote marks. Thu Aug 22 23:38:56 -0700 2002 260572 0 JudiAu 6 260596 Ah milady, I wholeheartedly agree that it is a sin To call any drink a Martini if it's not made with gin. There are so many arguments about what constitutes a real Martini, but you are entirely correct about the fact that it should be served as cold as possible, which is the entire point of a Martini (not crystal clear appearance as some "experts" have noted - a Martini is a DRINK, not a fashion accessory). Your comments about smaller, vintage glasses and a metal cocktail shaker (stainles steel is best) are spot on. If my Martini does not have a thin layer of ice along the top, it gets sent back. Let Auntie Mame worry about bruising the gin, James Bond knew what he was talking about when he said "shaken, not stirred" (actually in the first book, "Casino Royale," he said "shake it very well until it's ice cold," and, it should be noted, Ian Fleming's literary character drank gin Martinis as often as he drank the vodka concoctions - the vodka preference was yet another filmic faux pas). Fri Aug 23 00:59:29 -0700 2002 260594 0 Chris G. 7 260620 Ah, I forgot that in my commentary! The lovely bit of ice on top. Fri Aug 23 13:30:55 -0700 2002 260596 0 JudiAU 4 260593 I thoroughly enjoyed your martini commentary though I must say that I am one of the vodka "martini" swilling masses. Nonetheless, I find your perspective both insightful and amusing. Maybe the postings are influencing my decisions. Tonight I had a Sapphire Blue Gin martini. And yes, I had olives with it. Thanks again. Thu Aug 22 23:25:52 -0700 2002 260568 0 Lotus 4 260602 Indeed, a good martini is better than many husbands. Image: http://members.tripod.com/~MrSuave/tinibook.gif Fri Aug 23 08:12:39 -0700 2002 260568 0 ironmom 5 260699 Oh? How many husbands have you had? Sun Aug 25 18:05:08 -0700 2002 260602 0 Deacon