One of my favourite stories about Luke is from a couple of years ago, at which point we’d been dating for a few years already (that detail is significant). We were at some bar in Liverpool, and he was getting us drinks, so I asked him to get me a dirty martini. He kind of paused, and said “…is the “dirty” bit important?” I explained what a dirty martini is (if you’re not familiar, it’s when olive brine is added into the mix), and then said “So all the other times you’ve seen me order a dirty martini, did you think I was just trying to be sexy or something?” He was like “Um…yes.”
I swear, the number of times we totally misinterpret or don’t understand one another. I’m still waiting to find out we have entirely different definitions for basic nouns, like what I call a horse he calls a cow or something.
Anyway, I have martinis on the brain after reading this New York Times article on the importance of adding vermouth to a martini. I agree whole-heartedly; if you want to drink a glass of gin, just drink a glass of gin. There’s no need for that “glance at bottle of vermouth across the room, then shake thoroughly” nonsense. Although I do disagree with Schaap on two points. For one thing, it’s totally fine with me if you want vodka in your martini instead of gin; it’s just not a martini. And for another, if she finds an olive too salty a note in her martini, ye gods. Just for reference, here’s how I make my martinis, the recipe for which I learned at my beloved father’s knee:
1/2 cup gin
1/4 cup vermouth
1/4 cup olive brine
Combine in a cocktail shaker and mix like hell. Strain and serve.
By the way, that recipe serves one. God I love my family.
Anyway, so if a single olive is too much sodium for Schaap, my version of a martini would probably taste like a cup of soy sauce. But that’s just fine, because that leaves all the more olive brine for me. Although I can be persuaded to share…as long as you’re drinking Mother’s Ruin, like the good lord intended.
