A resident of Lakeland, Florida, Andrew Brendmoen has an extensive background in bartending and customer service. A skilled mixologist, Andrew Brendmoen takes pride in his ability to create a variety of cocktails with a twist.
In its classic formulation, the martini is a cocktail that combines gin and vermouth (though some use vodka in place of gin). One fundamental choice is between a sweet “Italian” vermouth or a dry “French” vermouth. This has nothing to do with whether the martini is wet or dry, which instead refers to the quantity of vermouth in the drink. One part vermouth to three parts gin is standard, with any more vermouth crossing the line to “wet.”
One classic variation of the martini is the Churchill martini, which simply leaves out the vermouth and is straight gin and ice, with olives or a lemon twist as the garnish. The bone dry martini has just a trace of vermouth, which is accomplished by using vermouth to rinse the glass, then pouring out the liquid before adding chilled gin.
Made popular by President Franklin Roosevelt during the Great Depression, the dirty martini is one that combines equal parts olive brine and vermouth. The vesper martini, on the other hand, was featured in the Ian Fleming James Bond novels, as well as the 2006 version of Casino Royale, and features one measure of vodka, three measures of Gordon’s, and a half measure of Kina Lillet (a liqueur flavored with quinine). Shaken until ice cold, it has a slice of lemon peel as a garnish.
Andrew Brendmoen 