The original Martini recipe actually called for Italian (sweet) vermouth. The Dry Martini was a variation that substituted French (dry) vermouth. Only more recently did ‘dry’ come to refer to the amount of vermouth.
- 3 oz Plymouth Gin
- 1 oz Noilly Prat dry vermouth
- 2 dashes orange bitters
- Lemon twist
This was my first time trying the Noilly Prat – like most people, I have only used Martini & Rossi in the past. Seems good! But a freshly opened bottle of vermouth is always better, or so they say.
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3Comments
January 21, 2013 at 3:02 pm
I just learned that this is sometimes called an Astoria, to distinguish it from the Dry Martini without the orange bitters. The evolution of the names is almost as interesting as the drinks themselves!
October 22, 2013 at 2:22 am
I’ve never used bitters in my martinis, will have to give it a shot… Any pointers or interesting twists on a slightly dirty martini?
October 22, 2013 at 1:51 pm
I looked around a little and was unable to find any variations on the Dirty Martini – and the best recipes seem to suggest that you should just use a dash of the olive juice, much like bitters. The one idea that occurs to me, if you drink your Martinis with gin, is to try an Old Tom gin. The heavy juniper with the olive juice might be really good – or not! And please report back.