Gin & It and Pink Gin

 

Next up, two beautifully simple cocktails.

First up, Gin and It. The “it” refers to the sweet red vermouth.

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Simply pour 30 ml gin and 30 ml sweet red vermouth into a mixing glass or cocktail shaker filled with ice. Stir well and strain into a frosted martini glass.

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For a Pink Gin:

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Add a few drops of Angostura bitters to a martini glass, roll around, then shake out. Add ice and gin and serve. (Can be served without ice if you prefer.)

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For both of these cocktails I used the last of my Hendrick’s gin (£22.73 for 70cl), Morrison’s own brand of rosso vermouth (£3.95 for 70cl at Morrisson’s) and of course Angostura bitters, made exclusively by House of Angostura in Trinidad and Tobago (£5.61 for 200ml – very cheap considering you only need a few drops at a time.)

Angostura bitters is definitely a good investment for a liquor cabinet as it is popularly used in many different cocktails and just a few drops make a world of difference to your drink.

Recipe taken from ‘Hollywood Cocktails’ by Tobias Steed and Ben Reed. Price for vermouth from Morrisons, price for gin from http://www.ocado.co.uk, price for bitters taken from http://www.thedrinkshop.com. Picture of bitters from http://www.wikipedia.org and picture of Gin and It from http://www.chow.com

Knickerbocker

 

The knickerbocker cocktail which was possibly invented in The Knickerbocker Hotel in Times Square, New York, is a little sweeter than a traditional martini as it incorporates a dash of sweet red vermouth into the recipe. The Knickerbocker hotel opened its doors in 1906 and was built by John Jacob Astor to be a symbol of luxury in a time of economic prosperity but 15 years later the hotel was forced to close after a change in fortune, and in 1912 John Jacob Astor met his maker on HMS Titanic.  

It is said that the original martini was also invented here by bartender Martini de Arma di Taggia who served it to John D. Rockerfeller I who in turn popularised the drink.

If you find that a martini is too dry for you I’d definitely recommend giving this drink a try:

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50ml gin

Large dash dry vermouth

Small dash sweet red vermouth

Add the gin and both vermouths to a mixing glass/cocktail shaker filled with ice. Once you have stirred the mixture well, strain into a frosted martini glass.

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Here I used Gordon’s Dry London Gin (£12 for 70cl at Tesco) since I’m running low on Hendrick’s which is rather more expensive. I used Martini & Rossi Extra Dry Vermouth (£9.89 for 1L at Tesco) as usual and I used Morrisson’s own brand of rosso vermouth (£3.95 for 70cl at Morrisson’s).

Recipe taken from ‘Hollywood Cocktails’ by Tobias Steed and Ben Reed.

Vodka Martini

 

A vodka martini, otherwise known as a vodkatini or a kangeroo, is an alternative to an ordinary martini if you’re not a fan of gin.

As I’ve previously mentioned and as most of you will undoubtedly know, the fictional spy James Bond is widely associated with martinis of all kinds. I often encourage male friends to try a martini by reminding them that 007 drinks them. In the film franchise, Bond usually drinks a vodka martini.

However in Ian Flemming’s original novel Casino Royale, Bond orders the following, “Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel.” And so the original Bond isn’t strictly a martini drinker. He in fact states “This drink's my own invention. I'm going to patent it when I can think of a good name.” and eventually names it a Vesper after Vesper Lynd, the first Bond Girl.

If however you wish to make a more traditional vodka martini, here are Tobias Steed’s instructions:

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50ml vodka

Dry vermouth

Lemon Zest to garnish

Add a couple of drops of vermouth into a mixing glass filled with ice, stir gently and strain out excess liquid. Add more ice, the vodka and stir again. Wait until the mixing glass/cocktail shaker has frosted, the strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a strip of lemon zest. This drink can also be served over ice in a rocks glass.

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Here I used a miniature of Absolut Vodka which i bought for this cocktail since I don’t drink vodka a lot (£2.45 from The Whiskey Shop). I used my old faithful Martini & Rosso Extra Dry Vermouth (£9.89 for 1L) and a lemon from Morrisons, if you’d care to know.

 

 

Recipe taken from ‘Hollywood Cocktails’ by Tobias Steed and Ben Reed. Price for Absolut taken from http://www.lincolnwhiskyshop.co.uk and picture from blacklightbottles.com. Price for vermouth taken from www.ocado.com.