Martinez
Old Tom gin, sweet vermouth, maraschino and bitters, stirred. The 1880s drink that stands between the Manhattan and the Martini — and is better than most people's Manhattans.
Built to the standard modern spec; not yet tested in our kitchen. How we test.
The recipe.
Scaling adjusts quantities only. Prepare shaken drinks in individual portions.
Let’s make a good drink.
Chill a coupe.
Add the gin, sweet vermouth, maraschino and bitters to a mixing glass.
Fill with ice and stir for 25 to 30 seconds.
Strain into the chilled coupe, express a lemon twist over the top and drop it in.
A thoughtful finish
- Old Tom gin is the recipe; its slight sweetness is what makes the drink round rather than sharp. A London dry works with a touch of syrup and makes a drier Martinez that many prefer.
- Equal parts gin and vermouth is the 1880s proportion; modern bars often go two to one gin. Both are correct; the equal-parts version is softer.
- Fresh sweet vermouth. Half the drink is vermouth, and a tired bottle shows.
Common mistakes
- Dry vermouth. That is a different, older drink — more or less a Martini with maraschino.
- Too much maraschino, which turns it cloying. A quarter-ounce is a lot.
- Shaking it.
A few good questions.
Is the Martinez the original Martini?
Possibly. The two drinks share a name's root and a structure, and the Martinez is older. But the Martini may simply have grown out of the gin-and-vermouth habit independently. Nobody knows.
Old Tom or London dry?
Old Tom is the historical gin and gives a rounder drink. London dry gives a drier one; add a bar-spoon of syrup to split the difference.
What are Boker's bitters?
A nineteenth-century aromatic bitters, defunct for most of the twentieth century and recreated in 2009. Angostura is the usual substitute.
Sweet or dry vermouth?
Sweet, in the 1887 recipe and the modern standard. The 1884 Byron version is ambiguous and some bars use a split.
Variations
Where it comes from
c. 1884–1887 · United States
Contested. More than one origin is claimed for this drink. We show the competing accounts rather than pick one.
The Martinez first appears in O. H. Byron’s Modern Bartenders’ Guide of 1884, described simply as a Manhattan made with gin in place of whiskey, and in the 1887 edition of Jerry Thomas’s Bar-Tender’s Guide with Old Tom gin, sweet vermouth, maraschino and Boker’s bitters. The town of Martinez, California, claims it was invented there for a gold miner; San Francisco’s Occidental Hotel claims it too; neither has evidence, and the drink is more plausibly a gin Manhattan named for the fashion of the time. Whether it is the Martini’s parent is argued about; it is at least its older sibling, and the 2000s revival made it a bar standard again.
Sources
- O. H. Byron, The Modern Bartenders' Guide, 1884 (book)
- Jerry Thomas, The Bar-Tender's Guide (1887 edition), 1887 (book)
- David Wondrich, Imbibe!, 2015 (book)
Strength. About 1.63 US standard drinks at an estimated 24.6% ABV, estimated from the ingredients and technique, not measured. What that means.
A little character in every sip.
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