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CockTAIL NATION: GET INFUSED!

Marc Smolinski
ith the return of the
lounge scene to social
prominence, the ability
to create classic
cocktails at home has regained some
of its former prestige. While the liquor
cabinets of our parents’ generation
may never be resurrected, an intelli-
gently stocked bar can
provide serious style for
those willing to make the
effort. The ability to make
the king of cocktails, the
martini, on request will
give you an edge of chic
boozeworthyness only
dreamed of by the
microbrew crowd.

A standard martini bar
will include gin, vodka, dry
vermouth, ice, lemons and
olives. Tools include a shot
glass, stainless steel
shaker, bar strainer, bar spoon and
martini glasses. In reality, you can
successfully improvise. There has
been endless debate about how to mix
the perfect martini, which falls outside
the scope of this article, but several
points are worth noting. A standard

THE
MARTINI

BACKGROUNDER

 

martini is based on two ounces of raw
spirit. Contrary to martini god James
Bond’s advice, stirred, not shaken, is
the proper way to mix a martini.
Shaking accelerates the melting of the
ice and consequently dilutes the
martini. A classic martini is a strong
drink, little more than raw booze, but
subtle alterations create the purest and
most celebrated cocktail ever.

Today, of course, the
martini family has exploded
in popularity and diversity.
Endless martini variations
are available at bars and
restaurants: Seabreezes,
Crantini’s, and Blue Notes
are just a few of the possi-
ble variations. By adding
juice, liqueurs, spirits and
garnishes, the possibilities
are limited only by the
creativity of the bartender.
These cocktails are tasty
without a doubt, and they
are stylish, but strictly speaking,
martini vaiations are not martinis. They
are actually short vodka cocktails. This
distinction must be stated for the
benefit of purists who may sneer at
their parvenu cousins who have
flocked to the martini banner. Those

Arthur Hanks

Many cultures claim the origin of this
powerful and popular mixed drink.
The British say that the drink was

named in honour of the Martini & Ross
rifle, noted for its accuracy.
The Italians claim that the drink was

purists might be better to consider the
cocktail resurgence as a synergistic
phenomenon that partakes of drinks,
style, music and social ideals that hail
from a headier, more self-assured era.

The other major aspect of the
martini boom is the surging popularity
of infused martinis. These are true
martinis with all the purity of the
original drink, and blindingly stylish. As
with the designer martinis discussed
above, the only limit to the potential
variations is the vision of the infuser.
Simply, an infused martini is made with
vodka that has been macerated with a
flavouring agent, and left to leach the
essence out of the flavouring. Most
martini aficionados have tried at least
one infused spirit: gin. Gin is essen-
tially vodka which is then flavoured
with a mix of botanicals, most promi-
nently juniper berries. The methods of
flavouring gin range from re-distillation
to cold or hot infusion. Each distillery
has their own recipe for botanicals and
methods of flavouring, which results in
variations from gin to gin. Infused
vodka has only marginal dilution and
the flavour is integrated into the
essence of the spirit.

Continued on next page...

first concocted by the native vermouth
distiller, Martini Rossi.

San Franciscans attribute its origins
to bartender Jerry Thomas, who
apparently created it for a thirsty
traveller en route to nearby Martinez.

Meanwhile tiplers in Martinez,
California, home of the Martini Festival