Hello my Foodie Friends.  Happy start to the summer!  With summer, comes entertainment and happy times with our family and friends.  One of my wife’s favorite times is to enjoy the creative Martini’s made by one of our good friends. The classic Martini is a cocktail that dates back to the 1880’s made with “dry” vermouth.  The popularity of the Martini emerged in the 1950’s with the addition of gin to it, and vodka in the 1970’s.  Product placement in the movies also has played a big part in the popularity of Martini’s with Ernest Hemingway, Marlene Dietrich, and Humphrey Bogart seen drinking Martini’s on the screen. However, no real or fictional character has done more for the classic Martini than James Bond. The term “shaken, not stirred” has become a catch phrase from the James Bond fictional character of Ian Fleming’s novels that have become much followed movies. In the film “Casino Royale”, James Bond instructs the bartender how to make his Martini; “A dry Martini. Three measures of Gordoni, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well unit it’s ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel”. This Martini has also taken on the title of the “Vesper”. Here is the official recipe for “The Vesper Martini”:

60 ml. gin

20 ml. vodka

10 ml. Lillet Blanc or Cocchi Americano

Shake all ingredients with ice in a shaker. Then pour into a chilled Martini glass. Add a lemon twist. 

The Martini glass is long-stemmed and distinctive with an inverted conical shape and flat base. The reason for the wide brim is said to produce surface tension that brings out the bouquet of the gin.  The cone shape helps to keep the ingredients of the drink from separating.  The drinker can hold the stem instead of the bowl so that the heat does not change the temperature of the drink.  The Martini glass comes in various sizes and styles.  Contemporary Martini recipes usually call for 4, 6, and 8 oz. glasses.  The Shanghai Martini glass has also become a popular glass. It has longer stem that is 7.1” long with a 7.8 oz. top.  This provides a more elegant way to serve your cocktail. 

Here is a delicious summer Martini Recipe.

Peach Martini

Ingredients

2 ounces vanilla vodka

1 -ounce peach schnapps

2 ounces peach nectar

1/2 -ounce fresh lime juice

Ice cubes

Directions:

In a cocktail shaker mix all the ingredients along with the ice. Shake well and pour into a chilled martini glass.

Garnish with a peach slice.

Stop by Compliments to the Chef located at 46 Marion Avenue, Saratoga Spring’s kitchen essentials store for your Classic and Shanghai Martini glasses, Martini misters, shakers, zesters, and other accoutrements to assist you with your cocktail creations. Have fun entertaining this summer with friends and family…and maybe even catch up on some James Bond flicks!  Remember; “Life Happens in the Kitchen”.  Take care. John and Paula