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DRINKS FEATURES
FEATURED COCKTAIL
VODKA MARTINI
Traditionally a Martini was made with gin and dry white vermouth, however in recent years substituting vodka for gin has become the norm, as vodka’s popularity has exploded since the 1960s. A standard modern martini is mixed at a ratio of 5 to 1 of gin/vodka to vermouth. However the trend is towards drinking dryer and dryer martinis which means less vermouth and more spirit.
The origin of the drink is widely disputed but one of the more likely explanations is that the Martini is a descendant of the ‘Martinez’ cocktail which was being widely mixed in California around the 1860s. It was, however, the Prohibition era that propelled the Martini into being an American classic cocktail, as gin overtook whiskey in popularity as it was easier for the bootleggers to produce.
The popularity of the Vodka Martini can be traced to a certain fictional character called James Bond who asked for his Vodka martinis “shaken not stirred”. However, a lot of bar professionals think that Martinis taste better stirred not shaken, as shaking gin can ‘bruise’ the liquid and also dilute the drink - thus changing the taste of the cocktail.
The first vodka martini drank by James Bond was in the movie ‘Dr No’ in 1962 however the phrase ‘Vodka Martini, shaken not stirred’ was not mentioned until the release of Goldfinger in 1964.
It is unclear what brand of vodka would have been Bond’s favourite, but it states in the novels that Bond preferred vodka made from grain, not potatoes and preferred Russian or Polish vodka. One thing that is certain is that James Bond has to take a lot of credit for the rise and rise of Vodka plus the popularity of the Vodka Martini! |
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