So, you’ve decided to have a party after hours and your guests want a martini. You don’t feel like driving to the store so you decide it’s time to call the after hours alcohol delivery guy after midnight. But making martini can be complicated especially if you’re not a bartender.
Well here are 5 essential steps for a good martini:
1. Make sure you have the right equipment
You’ll need a martini glass, an ice bucket, a bottle opener, olive picks and olives. It’s also nice to have some coasters so your guests can set their glasses down without messing up your furniture or leaving rings.
That should take care of most of what you need for preparing cocktails at home.
2. Cut the vermouth with water
Vermouth is another name for wine that has been fortified with brandy or another spirit. The flavor of the wine starts off sweet but then it gets bitter from all the added to it which makes it perfect for martinis.
But you don’t want your guests to get too tipsy so it’s best that you cut the vermouth with water. You can do this by measuring out an equal amount of water and then pouring it into the glass before putting in any of the other ingredients. That will give everyone a nice buzz without being drunk since they are drinking on an empty stomach while they wait for their dinner to be served.
3. Chill ingredients
Certain spirits come straight from the bottle or can but if yours doesn’t you should chill them down before serving them over ice in a glass. This is particularly true for gin because its flavor changes when it is cold which means your drink can have more of a kick depending on how long you let it sit in the fridge.
4. Put ice in the shaker
When you’re shaking a martini, you want to use crushed ice instead of regular ice cubes so that it will blend better with the other ingredients. You can either put some ice in a glass and then use a fork to crush it up or you can use an ice crusher if you have one.
5. Pour and strain
Once you’ve got all your ingredients ready, pour them into the martini shaker and give them a good shake. Make sure you don’t fill the shaker too full though because that will make it hard to mix everything together properly.
After about 20 seconds, strain the drink into your martini glass and then add the olives. There you have it, your very own martini. Enjoy!