Stirred Art
Bar tips ยท Technique
How to make a better Martini at home
A Martini is gin, vermouth and a garnish, so every small mistake shows in the glass. These four changes cost nothing.
Stir it, don't shake it
Shaking clouds a Martini and leaves ice chips floating on top. Stirring gets it just as cold and keeps it clear and silky. Stir with ice for 20 to 30 seconds. Shaken or stirred? has the rule for every other drink.
Keep the vermouth in the fridge
Vermouth is wine. Once the bottle is open it starts to oxidise, and a bottle that's spent a year on the shelf tastes flat and stale. Keep it in the fridge and finish it within a month or so.
Freeze the glass
A Martini has no ice in the glass, so it starts warming the moment you pour it. Put the glass in the freezer for 15 minutes first and the drink stays cold to the last sip.
Squeeze a lemon peel over it
Cut a strip of peel with as little white pith as you can, hold it skin-side down over the glass and squeeze. The oil sits on the surface, and it's the first thing you smell.
Two Martinis to try next
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Know what you'll like before you order it
Photograph a bar menu and Stirred Art puts the drinks closest to your taste first. Add your bottles and it shows what you can make tonight.
