An ice cold, top-shelf gin, and a whisper of dry vermouth garnished with 4 pickled onions. I love both the Gibson Martini and the traditional Dry Gin Martini, although the difference is minor. My recipe for the Dry Gin Martini has the addition of 4 drops of orange bitters added to the mix and is garnished with olives and a lemon twist, the Gibson Martini is simply the gin and vermouth with pickled onions, no orange bitters. Either way, my Martini recipes are both quite excellent.
One legend has it that The Gibson was named after a sober businessman named Gibson. Gibson, although a teetotaler, still participated in the businessman’s ‘3 Martini lunch’, having the bartender serve him ice water in a Martini glass, a pickled onion the only clue that it wasn’t an actual Martini.
A second legend states that the Gibson was the original ‘dry’ martini, and the pickled onion allowed it to stand out from the others. But as the dry martini became more and more popular, the onion was the only real difference between The Gibson and a Traditional Gin Martini.
I like both of my Martinis very dry, I pour the vermouth over the ice, give it a stir or two and pour the excess vermouth out. When adding the orange bitters, I like to simply add 4 drops onto the olive garnish and stir it into the ice cold cocktail. The type of gin I prefer is very complex with a woodsy, botanical quality to it, fruity and spicy, like freshly mown grass in a cocktail.
It’s okay to keep your gin and vermouth in the refrigerator but not in the freezer. Part of the beauty of a really good gin is the bouquet when gin is frozen, you lose the aromatic qualities that make it such a pleasure to drink.
And lastly, never shake gin, it oxidizes rapidly and changes the gin’s character, you know, the character you just spent a ton of money on…
Here’s The Gibson Martini recipe:
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 ½ Ounces Gin
- ½ Ounce Dry Vermouth
- 4 Cocktail Onions as a garnish
PROCESS:
-Place several ice cubes into a cocktail shaker, pour the vermouth over the ice and stir several times to coat the ice, pour out the excess vermouth
-Pour the gin over the ice and stir 40-50 times, until the shaker is frosty and ice cold
-Pour into an ice-cold martini glass and garnish with onions
Here’s my Traditional Martini recipe:
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 ½ Ounces Gin
- ½ Ounces Dry Vermouth
- 7 Drops Orange Bitters
- 3 Olives as a garnish
- Lemon twist as a garnish
PROCESS:
-Place several ice cubes into a cocktail shaker, pour the vermouth over the ice and stir several times to coat the ice, pour out the excess vermouth
-Pour the gin over the ice and stir 40-50 times, until the shaker is frosty and ice cold
-Pour into an ice-cold martini glass
-Place 4 drops of orange bitters onto the skewered olives, stir the martini with the olives to incorporate
A Martini or Gibson is made with GIN and vermouth. Not vodka! These celestial drinks are pure and simple; I’ll give you a thumbs up on the bitters, however! Please, people, just because something is served in a “martini” glass does NOT make it a Martini. Chocolate with sprinkles? No. Just no.
I like the way you think, Lizzie. There is just something about really good orange bitters and a herbaceous gin that knocks my socks off, and I can do without the vermouth frankly.
It was about 25-degrees here (Boise) last night and we were plannning to “martini & grill” — so mixed the gin, vermouth and bitters, and added 2 Tbsp. of water to the pitcher for each drink. No ice. Put the pitcher outside and voila! Perfection without the ice cubes. Obviously for winter only…..
Now that sounds like my kind of grilling!!!