Dirty, twisted or sweet – what’s your fancy?

It’s cocktail hour and you’re thirsty. Don’t stress, we won’t make you scroll through 500 words to get to the recipes. But do scroll down for some insider secrets to making the perfect martini.

Time to get dirty

A dirty martini is a dry martini with a splash of olive brine. Dry and smooth, this is the classic drink to end your day and get the evening underway.

DIRTY MARTINI

Ingredients

60ml unConscious Dry Gin
5ml Vermouth
2 green olives
Splash of olive brine

Method

1. Combine gin and vermouth and pour into a mixer containing ice.
2. Thread a toothpick through the olives and place in a chilled martini glass.
3. Add a splash of olive brine to the martini glass then pour in the combined gin and vermouth. Stir with the olive stick and enjoy.

With a twist

A twist of lemon rind adds a citrus tinge to a classic martini. A few drops of orange bitters add an extra pop of tang for a refreshing pre-dinner drink.

TWISTED MARTINI

Ingredients

75ml unConscious Aussie Bush Gin
15ml Vermouth
Ice
Strip of lemon zest
3 drops of orange bitter (optional)

Looking to pop your cherry?

Swapping the dry vermouth for a sweet vermouth transforms a classic martini into a sweeter version. This is one to get the party started.

SWEET MARTINI

Ingredients

75ml unConscious Dry Gin
15ml Rouge (sweet) Vermouth
Ice
Caster sugar
Maraschino cherry syrup
Maraschino cherry

Method

1. Combine gin and vermouth and pour into a mixer containing ice.
2. Spread caster sugar on a flat plate. Using your finger, smear some cherry syrup from the jar around the rim of a chilled martini glass. Dip the rim of the glass in the sugar to form a sugar ring.
3. Strain the gin and vermouth mix into the prepared glass. Garnish with a maraschino cherry. Cheers!

Martini masterclass

Ok, so with martini in hand, it’s time to unravel some of the secrets to taking your martini to the next level.

Stirred, not shaken

While we’d all like to be James Bond, don’t shake your martini. Shaking a martini can leave tiny shards of ice in the mixture making it cloudy and diluting the drink. Nobody wants that. We’ll leave 007 to catch the bad guys, not mix the drinks.

Finding the balance

The ‘right’ balance of gin to vermouth is a bit like deciding how you prefer your steak – it comes down to personal taste. The 5:1 ratio is the most common for a dry martini while 15:5 is often used for the sweet martini varieties. Our advice? Experiment until you find the right balance for you.

Stay chilled

The secret to a sensational martini is for it to be arctic-level cold. Keep your gin in the freezer, your vermouth in the fridge, and have plenty of ice on hand. Placing the martini glasses in the freezer for a few hours will ensure a chilled serving. However, if you forget to do this, a good trick is to run the glass under the tap then place in the freezer while wet to speed up the process. Pouring your gin and vermouth mixture over ice and stirring before straining into your glass also adds extra chill factor.