...Just Good Food from Fresh Ingredients: #MasterpieceCocktail Week 3

#MasterpieceCocktail is brought to you by my husband, Rob.

Tonight for #MasterpieceCocktail I decided to go with a special on a true classic: the Martini. The Martini is the quintessential classic cocktail composed of Gin and Dry Vermouth, about as simple as a cocktail can get. The Martini can be traced back to the late 19th century. The exact origin and name are unknown with several theories existing. The Martini became one of the most predominant cocktails during Prohibition due to Gin being available illegally. The Martini went by the wayside following Prohibition but has seen a recent resurgence.

To highlight how much the Martini has influenced the cocktail world, I also decided to try various Martini-based cocktails: the "Perfect" Martini (add Sweet Vermouth), the "Yale" (add Blue Curacao, I also added orange juice and Cointreau to give it more sweetness), and the "Bronx" (add orange juice). The basic Martini and the "Perfect" version is a bit of an acquired taste due to the dryness and prevalence of the Gin in the flavor profile. The Yale and Bronx are classic variations, with the Bronx being similar to the classic Orange Blossom (also called Adirondack No. 1) and similarly tracing its origins to the Waldorf Astoria Hotel.

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The key to all Martinis is keeping the ingredients cold minimize the ice melting and diluting the flavor. Its best to chill your mixing glass, serving glasses, and Gin. Also a key is to Stir not shake the Martini to present chipping of the ice and easier melting. James Bond did prefer a shaken Vodka Martini but, according to Martin Sheen's character on the West Wing (Jed Bartlett), "James is ordering a weak martini and being snooty about it."

I hope you enjoy the drinks as much as we did.

All recipes are stirred in a mixing glass with ice and strained into a chilled cocktail glass.

Classic Martini