Martini cocktails, martini bars and martini culture
Generative AI has finally reached the world of cocktails, with apps such as https://www.bargpt.app/. Yes, Bar GPT... I gave it a try, asking for a classic martini cocktail with a summer twist, a drink able to represent the history of the martini. Here is what I got: Vintage Voyage Martini Embark on a sensory journey …
While doing resaearch for my new book on the Martini Cocktail (!!!), I found a little gem, that for some reason I had forgotten. In the interlude of the first ever (lovely) book dedicated entirely to the Martini (1976), John Doxat reports about an allegedly unpublished passage from Alice in Wonderland, in which Alice meets …
Dale DeGroff, known as the king of cocktails, is one of the most important figures in the cocktail reinassance movement of the 21st century. Co-founber of the Museum of the American Cocktail, author of classic books on the themes, mentor to a copuple of generations of bartenders, etc. (see his achievements here). In this video, …
While doing research for my book on Zen and the Martini Cocktail, I had the chance to read again the Italian book In defence of the olive in a martini. This is a little wonder, where writer Vito Cassano explores all aspects connected to the green gem in our Martini: the olive. The book talks …
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If you love old cocktail books as much as I do, have a look at the free digital versions of more than 1000 (!!!) classics books available at http://euvslibrary.com/. This is the on-line version of the books collection by the Exposition Universelle des Vins et Spiritueux, a Museum in Bendor Island, in south of France. The Museum …
Fantastic conversation about Martinis between Tristan Stephenson (aka the Curious Bartender) and Alice Lascelles, drinks journalist and author of one of the greatest books on Martini even written (totally recommended). History, culture, techniques and many more Martini wisdom shared here, thank you to both Tristan and Alice! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjGXiPOHrIE&t=152s
Sometimes, when I am in a cocktail-friendly city like Madrid, I like to choose my bar not by looking at rankings and reviews, nor by asking friends and fellow barflies. I just open a (google) map, pick a bar that inspires me, and just try it. I did that with the Harvey's cocktail bar, in …
I am always suspicious when it comes to articles containing rankings like this one by Punch, mainly because there are sooo many gins and sooo many preferences that listing a few does not do justice to the field. Still, it is always good to read why great bartenders prefer one gin, and whet they use …
Continue reading "The Best Gin for Martinis, According to Bartenders"
The Raffles Hotel opened in 1887, named after Sir Stamford Raffles, the founder of Singapore. Since then, it has been the place for politicians, movie stars and other interesting characters from around the world. In 1915, The Long Bar was established as the "american bar" of the hotel, and came to fame because here the …
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In this article, Emma Janzen explores the story and the contemporary role of bitters within Martinis, concluding that "bitters have not secured a definitive role in the modern Martini". And the conversation goes on here. Initially, bitters were a staple in Martini recipes, but the trend diminished post-Prohibition as bartending simplified, leading to a bitters-less …
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The Martini Hour 