Now that fall is upon us, it is time to start thinking about holiday parties, including what drinks to serve to your guests. On behalf of NOLET’S Silver Dry Gin, New York mixologist Jason Littrell of superhip JBird provides a step-by-step guide to mixing up the perfect martini for your holiday gatherings.
Step 1: If entertaining four guests, measure out four ounces of gin. Add into your mixing glass and add large ice cubes. Keep the ice just above the gin line so there is a good ratio of surface to liquid so as not to water down your drinks.
Step 2: Hold your barspoon like you would hold chopsticks and gently twist it with your fingers through the spirit. Technique is key here–it’s all in the circular stirring motion of the fingers along the ridges of the spoon handle. Keep your arm and wrist steady and be gentle so as not to bruise the botanicals in the gin. If done correctly, you can stir without hearing a sound from the ice or spoon. Stir for 30-60 seconds.
Step 3: Use a Hawthorne strainer to strain about one ounce of gin per chilled martini glass. A Hawthorne strainer has tight metal coils that tend to separate the ice from the liquid better than a Julep strainer.
Step 4: Slice the rind of a lemon and squeeze about 15 centimeters away from the glass at a 45-degree angle to perfume the glass and drink. Twist the lemon.
Photos courtesy of Kyle Dean Reinford.
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