I Want To Be A Martini Taster
Sometimes, I wonder what you have to do (or who you have to f*ck) to get certain jobs. Food critic for the New York Times - good job. Lots of prestige. Wine & spirits critic for the New York Times - less prestige but more drinking. I just saw the ultimate assignment in an article called (somewhat incredulously) No, Really, It Was Tough: 4 People, 80 Martinis.
The point of the article was to determine which gin made the best Martini. Conclusion One: A Martini does not contain vodka. An article after my own purist (read: snobbish) heart. Conclusion Two: Bombay Sapphire - no so good and perhaps not worth the price. Interesting theory. I’ll have to put it to the test. Conclusion Three: Plymouth English Gin (costing almost 50% less) makes the best Martini.
Surprisingly, the tasting panel found that bottom shelf brands Gordon’s London Dry and Seagram’s Extra Dry tasted better than Bombay Sapphire. Bombay Sapphire which can run up to $40 for 750ml was described as having “jangly flavors of mint, herbs and citrus, with detectable alcoholic heat: a neurotic Martini.” In comparison, Gordon’s ($12 per 750ml) was “gentle and harmonious with cardamom and nutmeg aromas: a Martini in a gray flannel suit,” while Seagrams ($15 per 750ml) was “surprisingly complex, with fruit, ginger, juniper and citrus flavors: a Martini with a thesaurus.” Hendrick’s, with its cucumber-laced flavor was found to be “unusual, intriguing floral aromas: a Martini in a Hawaiian shirt.” Even Beefeater was found to make a good Martini.
Personally, I find Bombay Sapphire Martini’s to be both feared and respected. The “detectable alcoholic heat” comes from the fact that Sapphire is overproof gin, weighing in at 100 proof. With the right amount of vermouth, a Sapphire Martini with loosen up even the most tightly-wound. For Hendrick’s Martini’s, I go the recommended route, with a wafer-thin cucumber slice floated for garnish and slight flavor infusion. It has a bright flavor and no detectable alcohol flavor. It is essentially the Mojito of Martinis.
I can’t speak to Plymouth. I found Tanqueray No. Ten to be unremarkable, making a meh Martini (a meh-tini?). Tanqueray had a limited run of a batch called Tanqueray Malacca 1857 Blend, purporting to be based on a recipe used in the Malacca (or Molucca, depending on whose spelling one uses) Isles in 1857. It was fruity and complex and made excellent Gin Blossoms. Unfortunately, I suspect that it did not sell well, explaining its quick discontinuance. I much preferred it to No. Ten, which I did not consider worth the hype.
What conclusions have I drawn from this article? First: Karma smiles on some people, giving them jobs like video game reviewer or Martini taster. Second: 4 1/2 parts gin to one part vermouth. Third: considering the prices, I’m going to have to pick up a bottle of Beefeater, a bottle of Seagram’s, and a bottle of Gordon’s. All together, they’re still cheaper than a bottle of Sapphire.
Sphere: Related Content