If I am having a cocktail, four out of five times it will be a Martini. I love ’em.

AHH, the days when you could get a My Man Godfrey Martini at the 5th View Bar
in London wearing red knee-high boots!

My Guild of Food Writer chum Richard Ehrlich knows everything there is to know about martini making and I have been to two of his Martini Monologue workshops. I learned lots, I drank lots! Here’s a link to a brilliant article by Richard about this king of all cocktails.

Some will say that a Martini must only be made with gin. But I agree with Richard, “You can also make a vodka Martini, even though purists loathe the idea. They’re wrong. This is a different drink, and it will have a good flavour if made with good vodka.”

via GIPHY

I often make myself and Mr R a Martin Landau vodka Martini. After a couple of snifters Mr R cleverly started calling these MARTINI LANDAUS.

With the fabulous Recipes for Rebels book in the background

Carole’s favourite way of blending the drink is also a vodka-based version but she goes a bit heavier on the vermouth. This version reminds me of the Martinis I drank in my youth, I don’t think we knew all the stuff about “waving the vermouth at the glass” rather than adding a good old glug to the cocktail shaker.

Bonus Bloody Mary recipe – must let Yinzerella at Dinner is Served 1972 know about this!

If I’m making a non-movie star Martini I tend to chill the glasses, pop a tiny bit of vermouth in and swirl the glass to cover the inside with vermouth, throwing away the excess. Then I shake up the gin or vodka with a LOT of ice and pour (I note that Richard is a stir, not shake kinda guy, but I like the theatricality of a shake).

Carole’s version, heavy on the vermouth is a nice variation and of course, it’s good to mix things up now and then.

“Ooh la la!”

Here’s a brilliant silver screen Martini related story from Richard’s article.

WC Fields kept a Thermos flask full of them when shooting a movie, and referred to it as his “pineapple juice”. One day a joker emptied the flask and substituted pineapple juice. Fields took a sip, spat it out and roared, “who put pineapple juice in my pineapple juice?” 

CHEERS!

Carole’s Martini is the third martini recipe I have in the Silver Screen Suppers collection. As well as the Martini Laundaus there is also the super sweet but rather fabulous Liz Taylor and Rock Hudson’s “Giant” Martini. You can read all about that here. But here to whet your appetite is a photo of one I made earlier…

Makes me want to watch Giant all over again…

Carole liked a beer too apparently…

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