British super-spy James Bond may be the world ’ s most famous martini fan , but the cocktail is decidedly an American classic . The most common origin story traces to the Gold Rush town of Martinez , California , hence the name , but there are competing claims from New York to San Francisco . We do know for sure that its recipe appeared in printed bartending guides in the 1880s , and it may very well have been around for decades before that .
The martini has always enjoyed a special place in pop culture . Bond ordered his first in the 1953 novel “ Casino Royale ,” at the same time executives were popularizing the three-martini lunch across the United States , later immortalized in “ Mad Men .” “ Sex and the City ” helped martinis make the jump from the classic recipe to modern spinoffs , popularizing variants such as the Cosmopolitan . But no one captured the allure of the drink as eloquently as Nobel Prize-winning novelist Ernest Hemingway , who famously ran up a tab for 51 dry martinis in Paris after the city was liberated in World War II . In “ A Farewell to Arms ,” he wrote , “ I ’ ve never tasted anything so cool and clean … They make me feel civilized .”
Hemingway drank the original , made with gin ; Bond mixed gin and vodka to create the Vesper variant ; and in the ‘ 80s , vodka replaced gin for most newcomers to the cocktail and subsequent variants like the Cosmo . “ Originally gin was king , but since the ‘ 80s , vodka has taken over ,” says Megan Corrigan , lead bartender at River Bar & Lounge at Sea Island . “ When a guest orders a classic martini , up or on the rocks , 80 % of the time it is vodka . We also make a lot of Cosmos , Vespers , Lemon Drops and right now the hot one is the Espresso martini . I would estimate that I make more than 160 of each of these per month .”
007 is famous for preferring his martinis “ shaken , not stirred ,” and Corrigan agrees that there is a difference , depending on your ingredients . “ Gin is made up of a lot of delicate herbs and by shaking gin , you run the risk of ‘ bruising ’ its delicate nature . By stirring gin , you also preserve the velvety quality , often a feature gin lovers look for in a martini . So , gin martinis are stirred , and vodka martinis are shaken . Most important to note , the reason for utilizing either technique is the same — dilution .” That ’ s because they are usually mixed with ice to cool , then strained . The two classic presentations are up ( neat ), or on the rocks , and the most popular garnishes at Sea Island are olives , bleu cheese olives or a lemon twist . Drops of olive brine make it “ dirty ” or even “ filthy .” Corrigan admits , “ To me the true martini lover is someone who wants the simple elegance of the spirits , but personally I like adding a little olive brine .”
A small but growing trend is the miniature version , the “ marteeny .” Mini versions allow patrons to sample more recipes and allows for glassware creativity . “ The mar-teeny is usually served in a small coupe or wine glass , and it ’ s different visually . It gives a different look and breaks the monotony of 120 years of the same old glass ,” Corrigan states .
SEA ISLAND MARTINIS
CLASSIC DIRTY MARTINI AT OAK ROOM
• 3 ounces Wheatley Vodka
• . 5 ounces olive brine Method : Combine ingredients in a shaker tin with ice , then shake for 5-7 seconds . Double strain the cocktail into chilled glassware and add garnish . Glass : Martini or coupe glass Garnish : Blue cheese stuffed queen olives
THE YELLOW GROVE AT RIVER BAR & LOUNGE
• 1.5 ounces citrus vodka
• . 5 ounces Dolin Blanc Vermouth
• . 75 ounces grapefruit juice
• . 5 ounces Ancestral Oleo Saccharum
• . 5 ounces fresh lemon juice
• 2 dashes 18.21 Grapefruit Lavender Bitters Method : Combine all ingredients in shaker tin with ice , then shake for 5-7 seconds . Double strain the cocktail into chilled glassware and add garnish . Glass : Martini glass Garnish : Grapefruit peel and mint
The Yellow Grove
FALL / WINTER 2022 / 23 | SEA ISLAND LIFE 17