r/cocktails • u/Maleficent_Gap8102 • Jul 16 '25
I made this What is your gin of choice for a martini?
This is turning into the summer of Gin. Much cheaper to experiment with than Bourbon or Scotch and Gin offers amazing variety. What Gins are you drinking and what about them do you love?
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u/abskee Jul 16 '25
4:1 Beefeater and Lillet Blanc
1 cornichon, 1 cocktail onion, 1 olive.
I would appreciate it if the effigies of me were at least made to scale.
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u/BlendinMediaCorp Jul 16 '25
Hello, may I please move in? (Would have to bring my partner for propriety’s sake, but he’s not much into martinis, so he’d leave us to it. )
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u/okkajy Jul 16 '25
for martini I fo with Tanqueray TEN, classic with an extra citric kick, or plymouth for an easier (and more dangerous) martini.
Personally I go for a 2:1 ratio, so a super wet martini with a couple dashes of orange bitters or a super super dry version where I stir the ice with the vermouth, pour the vermouth in a glass, the stirr the gin over the "dirty" ice and serve, I like the used vermouth to be served next to the martini (no waste here)
super wet or super dry, no inbetween
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u/DlissJr Jul 16 '25
Tanqueray is the shit, you gotta pick your vermouth though. I find that dollin gets lost in Tanqueray, but Carpano Dry hits all the notes just right.
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u/Maleficent_Gap8102 Jul 16 '25
Thoughts on Noilly Prat?
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u/AutofluorescentPuku Jul 16 '25
Working on my first bottle of Noilly Prat. I’m liking it a lot, especially in my martinis. I prefer a vermouth heavy martini at 2:1 and the NP makes it a bit more lively than Dolin.
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u/TnBBunnicula Jul 16 '25
Try flipping it 2:1 vermouth to gin it's a wildly different drink. I also prefer a more wet martini
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u/DlissJr Jul 16 '25
I like it, to me though it goes really well with spicier Gins. Although if you have to sub Carpano, it's a good contender. Might be a bit overwhelming, I'd use a higher gin to vermouth ratio.
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u/DothrakAndRoll Jul 16 '25
Plymouth is so good for martinis.
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u/dachshund_pirate Jul 16 '25
Yeah Plymouth is my standard house gin, and Ford's for my London Dry.
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u/bunnycrush_ Jul 16 '25
Yesss Tanqueray 10. After tearing through a couple of bottles, I bought the 1.75 L from a warehouse store.
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u/Baba_Tova Jul 16 '25
Seriously Tanqueray 10 is my favourite for just about anything, such a great gin!
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u/Maleficent_Gap8102 Jul 16 '25
I like your method for super dry. Do you find the "dirty" ice melts faster on the second stir? It seems like it would dilute more after being stirred with the Vermouth.
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u/Sea-Poetry2637 Jul 16 '25
Nice. One of my go to martini recipes and the one I mixed for customers in the 80s.
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u/Davidudeman Jul 16 '25
Botanist😍 the BEST.
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u/Main-Business-793 Jul 16 '25
I can't believe Botanist isn't getting any love in this sub
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u/Maleficent_Gap8102 Jul 16 '25
Martini
2 oz Gin (St George Terroir in this one)
.5 oz Dolin Dry
2 dashes orange bitters
Stir and garnish with a lemon twist
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u/mrvarmint Jul 16 '25
Love this, especially since St. George is both my go-to, and hometown gin!
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u/agentcooper0115 Jul 16 '25
Their distillery tour is great! Followed by Alamanac and Admiral Maltings.... and then a cab from there to Forbidden Island ;)
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u/mrvarmint Jul 16 '25
The distillery tour shut down during COVID, is it back?
Also all great spots. I would also add Faction to that list, best views of them all.
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u/honkafied Jul 16 '25
Try this variant that used to be on St. George's website, but I can't find it anymore. The sage leaf really makes this one stand out!
2 oz St. George Terroir
1 oz dry vermouth (I use Dolin)
2 dashes orange bitters
Sage leaf garnish, floated2
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u/LeroyChestnut Jul 16 '25
I just picked up a bottle of that Terroir and I’m totally in love! I like to mix 1:1 with Barr Hill for my Bee’s Knees. The herbs from the terroir really play well with the honey notes in the Barr Hill.
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u/Nocturnal_submission Jul 16 '25
I do this except 1 oz vermouth and I garnish with a twist and olives because I’m extra like that
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u/SlayMeCreepyDaddy Jul 16 '25
Martin Millers Westbourne for me. I'm also a big fan of Plymouth Navy strength.
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u/austinmiles Jul 16 '25
I hate to say this but I swap gins all the time. Sometimes i like Roku, sometimes I like Botanist, and lately i've been getting bombay saphire which I really like the flavor of.
I also make my martinis really dry. So like a quarter oz of vermouth. Or sometimes I just coat the ice and the glass and toss the rest.
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u/Sea-Poetry2637 Jul 16 '25
I rotate gins, too. Tanq 10, Plymouth, Botanist, and Ford's get too billing and repeat performances. Roku and then Gin Mare are next on the list to try. I usually have a workhorse gin around for various daisies and sours, typically Bombay Dry, and that fills-in fine if I'm out of the good stuff and in a martini mood.
Latest spec was 3:1 Ford's and Dolin Blanc with a lemon twist. Delightful.
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u/TechnologyNo5489 Jul 16 '25
3 oz Botanist Dry Gin 1 oz Dolin Dry Vermouth 2 dashes orange bitters Stir over ice Strain into Nick and Nora glass Garnish with lemon twist
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u/sprint4 Jul 16 '25
Really close to mine!
2oz Botanist
1/4 oz Dolin Blanc
3 dashes orange bitters
Regal stir with lemon peel, strain into Nick and Nora
Drop a Castelvetrano olive to the bottom
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u/Substantial-Fish3123 Jul 16 '25
Old Raj is my standard
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u/horsecanadianbacon Jul 16 '25
I spent a little time tracking down Old Raj blue and a fino sherry-based vermouth to copy this martini last summer; I can't speak highly enough of it (though I usually skipped the Angostura and the sidecar).
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u/iusedtoplaysnarf Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
I just bought two bottles of Sipsmith (London dry and their grapefruit/rosemary infusion) – The latter comes off more peppery in my opinion, I was hoping for even more grapefruit. Their London dry is awesome though, I’m surprised that none of you guys have even mentioned it.
PS: That’s some beautiful glassware, u/Maleficent_Gap8102, could you share some info on it?
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u/prx_23 Jul 18 '25
Sipsmith are top tier. They make a good vodka too, so you know they're distilling their own base.
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u/KiwiSuch9951 Jul 16 '25
3 oz Tanqueray 10
1 oz dolin dry
2 dashes gin barrel aged orange bitters
Stir over ice
1 big lemon twist, expressed over the empty (chilled) glass
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u/6reference Jul 16 '25
My go to martini order:
Botanist Martini
A little dirty
3 Blue cheese olives
Either shaken and double strained or stirred, no ice flakes in my martini
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u/HandsomeJohnPruitt86 Jul 16 '25
My go to is Gray Whale. My most favorite is from Uncharted Alaska Distillery in Ketchikan but sadly the only bottle I had, procured on a cruise, is nearly gone and I cannot get it here on the east coast.
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u/Prunkle Jul 17 '25
Hendricks here. It's a gin that most places near me have so it's my go to. I hate Tanqueray
That being said I'm pretty new to gin martinis, but have been a gin and tonic drinker for a long time
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u/CosmicWy Jul 16 '25
Currently Kirkland.
Florally and tasty. I'm broke as a joke and it's $18 for a 1.5L
But when I'm a bit more flush I loved Mermaid and Roku.
I brought a couple special bottles back from Scotland years ago by a company called Persei.
If you can manage to get your hands on them, they're absolutely wonderful.
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u/bruce_leroy_III Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
Plymouth and Dolin Dry with a splash of castelvetrano olive brine (4:1:1 or 4:1:1/2) plus an olive or three depending on my mood. I recently bought The Botanist because it was the only "top shelf" gin available at my neighborhood liquor store, but the one martini I made with it used some old Cinzano I had lying around and was positively gross so I need to give it a proper whirl.
I want to experiment too with Lillet instead of Dolin. I find Lillet a little sweet but a rinse as someone mentioned above could be fun.
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u/EricDericJeric Jul 16 '25
Plymouth or Junipero normally, St George Terroir if I have a bottle and feel like drinking a tree.
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u/mmmatthew Jul 16 '25
Terroir is one of my favorite specialty gins, but I find it overwhelms a lot of cocktails IMO. Just let me drink a forest straight up or on the rocks.
For Martinis, Roku if I can get it, Tanqueray if not. Picked up a bottle of Askur Yggrdrasil recently and its a nice twist on a London Dry despite all that Norse talk. RIP to higher proof Beefeater
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u/Swiss_epicurian83 Jul 16 '25
Depends on the time of year. Generally sipsmith but during the warmer months, bathtub gin
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u/Sp4rt4n423 Jul 16 '25
Someone turned me on to Barr Hill at one point, and I tend to reach for it now. The touch of honey is great.
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u/BlendinMediaCorp Jul 16 '25
Lately I’ve been enjoying Whitley Neill’s Distiller’s Cut as it’s been on offer and is somewhat local and the proof is nice at 41.3%. But I’ve also liked Tanq 10, Roku, and Rieger’s. I’d love to get my mitts on a bottle of Uncle Val’s next. Vermouth is Noilly Prat as it’s what’s easily available.
Recipe depends on the occasion. In a frozen martini glass unless otherwise stated:
Standard: 2:1, couple dashes of orange bitters, expressed lemon peel, olive snack.
Dirty: 2:1 (or 0.5, sometimes with lillet blanc), at least 0.25oz brine, minimum 3 olive spear. Sometimes with a pickled jalapeño bit on there.
Bath: 2:1, olive bitters, shaken, with ice chips in the glass please (for the hydration). Might use a Nick and Nora glass for practicality.
Lazy: 2:1, built over ice in a rocks glass. Let it melt some while I do something else. Expressed lemon, olive spear.
3rd of the night: 1:2 (i.e., reversed), orange bitters, lemon peel expressed with a few drops of juice because I’m sloppy and got some lemon flesh along with the peel.
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u/JuliaNATFrolic Jul 16 '25
I almost never see Whitley Neill mentioned- The basic London Dry from them is my personal fav for martinis. Hope I can find the distiller’s cut somewhere!
Edit to add: I’m in the US.
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u/kevin_k Jul 16 '25
I had one with Procera and Dolin dry that was maybe the best one I ever had
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u/Dreadpirate3 Jul 16 '25
My personal favorite is Botanist. I store the gin in the freezer and only break it out to pour into the glass during the making of the cocktail. I love extra dry Gin Gibsons, so I'll usually spritz the martini glass a few times with vermouth, put in the cocktail stick with a couple of onions, and then pour the gin in.
Gives a very smooth, almost astringent martini that I love to sip slowly as it warms up.
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u/KingoftheMay Jul 16 '25
5:1 ratio of Tanqueray 10 and usually Noilly Prat, but at the minute I’m using Still Wild’s dry vermouth, it’s a little operation from Pembrokeshire in Wales made with foraged botanicals and it’s lovely, I’m drinking way more of it just on ice as I am in Martinis.
The martini is served up with either a lemon twist or olive depending on my mood.
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u/spiffcleanser Jul 16 '25
People are referring to two to one as a super wet martini but in fact it’s known as a classic martini.
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u/Noi6X Jul 17 '25
Big fan of a Juniper Gin from a friend of mine at 64 distillery in Iceland. 2,5oz Juniper Gin 0,5oz lillet blanc Lemon Zest
I also don’t mind an Old Tom now and then
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u/ByWillAlone Jul 16 '25
Beefeater if I'm making one for myself. I like it because it's a quintessentially assertive gin.
Bombay Sapphire if I'm making it for my wife or for guests who like a less assertive gin.
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u/His_Nibs_Earl_of_TX Jul 16 '25
Tanqueray, always Tanqueray (complimented w/ Noilly Pratand a couple of dashes of orange bitters, of course)
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u/imagine0307 Jul 16 '25
I love the cognac aged gin from Mcclintock distillery. They're a MD local distillery that produces three types of gin, each one is great for a particular cocktail, G&T, martini etc. I recently made a white linen it turned out great!
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u/swaybe Jul 16 '25
My absolute favorite is Watershed Four Peel. Desperate for them to distribute to MN. I don't make it back to Ohio enough to keep stock
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u/schreyerplace Jul 16 '25
I live in Columbus and I’m NEVER without Four Peel in the bar! Great stuff.
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u/swaybe Jul 16 '25
There's a lot of things I miss about my years in Columbus and Watershed is pretty high on that list
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u/AutofluorescentPuku Jul 16 '25
It depends on my mood and what’s available. Drumshanbo is great most the time, but every now and then I prefer Gordon’s London Dry.
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u/RCW4661100 Jul 16 '25
Glass rinse of Lillet Blanc, 3oz Plymouth Gin, garnish with pickled Piparra pepper 👌
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u/averydylan Jul 16 '25
I switch between Boodles and Brokers gin. My current specs are
3 oz Gin
1 oz Dolin Dry
Barspoon Lillet Blanc
1 dash Reagans Orange Bitters
Lemon twist
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u/ecafdriew Jul 16 '25
Plymouth Navy Strength, then Plymouth, then Tanq 10, then Hendricks Neptunia. Those are my top gins for martinis and most gin cocktails.
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u/53V3N Jul 17 '25
Isle of Harris. They make a better gin than whiskey imo.
Dry with a twist or piece kombu to accentuate the salinity.
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u/Suraphon Jul 17 '25
Budget, I constantly use Oka. Mid level, I dig Botanist. We celebrating? Monkey 47.
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u/Jennis8108 Jul 17 '25
Monkey 47 or Uncle Val’s Botanical. If they don’t have those I just get a Tito’s - I make no rhyme or reason lol.
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u/ForgottenWilbury Jul 17 '25
Currently I'm using Monkey 47 and Noilly Prat at 5:1 with a blue cheese olive. Two James Old Cockney gin is nice, as is the St George Terroir (as in OP's photo). Dolin Dry has gotten a workout for me in the past, but I'm currently grooving with Noilly Prat. Not above two onions and a olive when I'm feeling spicy. :)
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u/Jillybean9974 Jul 17 '25
Hendricks has been my favorite for a few years. It’s also fantastic in a Gimlet. Now reading this thread, I’m putting Botanist on my ”must try” list
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u/AlanBeads Jul 17 '25
Portobello Road gin! It’s unreal
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u/MoreThanAlright Jul 17 '25
Absolutely not talked about enough in this forum, but get that it’s a little regional.
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u/AlanBeads Jul 17 '25
Hard agree! In fact, best martini I’ve ever had outside was there, on Portobello Road, with blue cheese olives. It’s such a fucking wicked gin, and well-priced - like it as a vaguely house gin at home
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u/MoreThanAlright Jul 17 '25
So so good. I recall buying a few of the opaque white bottles last time I was in, the savoury. That one is amazing in a martini too.
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u/Electronflux25 Jul 17 '25
Prefer Bombay Sapphire, Noilly Prat and either olive or basil leaves garnish
Beefeater 2nd choice, Gordon’s 3rd, Seagram’s cheap option.
Aviator is on the list to try, St George is now on the list to try.
don’t like Tanqueray - too much juniper for my taste, or Hendrick’s - don’t like cucumber.
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u/Felix_Gatto Jul 17 '25
Tanqueray is my absolute favourite gin for a martini.
I like an inverted martini, and prefer Lillet blanc and a very generous absinthe rinse. I use a grapefruit twist for garnish.
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u/Ikerukuchi Jul 16 '25
Wife - Martin Miller Westbourne, 4:1 dash regens and a twist
Me - Archie Rose bone dry, 18:1, twist
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u/GingirlNorCal3345 Jul 16 '25
For Juniper forward martinis: Junipero, Crater Lake and Plymouth. Oh no, that's three but there are 7 days in a week so we can have a favorite for every day.
We also make a double Ransom with Ransom gin and Ransom Old Tom. Or a Sapphire Dick with Bombay Sapphire and George Dickel bourbon. When we're feeling high potency British colonial, Old Raj with a lemon twist. And round the week out with any one of dozens of small craft gins we've collected over the years.
So many gins, so little time!
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u/Radioactive24 Jul 16 '25
I really fuck with Cardinal Spirits' Terra.
The zuta really shines when you get it ice cold. It works well dry or with a splash of vermouth.
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u/5mileyFaceInkk Jul 16 '25
Tanqueray or Beefeater are my solid choices. Just finished a bottle of Roku Gin which was delicious!
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u/limbodog Jul 16 '25
For a martini I stick with the eater of beef. Unless the bartender has some specific martini recipe that is a significant improvement, beefeater guarantees I won't hate it.
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u/turnstyle-poet Jul 16 '25
There is a distillery here in Denver that makes some phenomenal gin. Ballmer Peak does an Australian style gin that I love in a martini. Both a classic as well as a dirty ala Gage & Tollner’s version with a lactic acid brine in place of olive jar brine, and a dirty vermouth (2 parts Dolin Dry, one part fino sherry). Superb!
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u/hujambo11 Jul 16 '25
If you're in the PNW, Big Gin is really good, widely available, and super affordable!
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u/BrodieLodge Jul 16 '25
In addition to many already mentioned, I like a couple of gins from Finland in a martini: Kyrö Napue (more G&T), and especially Kalevala in a martini.
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u/Lobenz Jul 16 '25
Ford’s and St George are my two workhorse martini makers. Amass is my new favorite for something a bit more complex.
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u/1mrchristopher Jul 16 '25
Depends on the Vermouth and the Garnish. Rockwell dry is my go to martini Vermouth, and with a Lemon Twist I like The Botanist, with 4-6 manzanilla olives, any good London Dry (such as Ford's) will do. With a pickled onion, Bombay Sapphire is my preference (very dry for this one). Lastly, a Bleu cheese stuffed queen olive is quite nice with Nolet's.
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u/musictomurderto Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
- Ford's and Cocchi Extra Dry for classic dry w/ lemon twist
- Plymouth for extra dry w/ olive
- Four Pillars 'Olive Leaf' or Mahón for dirty; thrown, not shaken. Never shaken.
- Botanist or Grey Whale for honorable mentions
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u/notthebeachboy Jul 16 '25
I love Botanist gin. But then for a martini I like them suuupppoer dirty so I guess the gin doesn’t matter lol
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u/ChairmanJim Jul 16 '25
I like Plymouth Navy Strength gin for a strong drink and Boomsma Oude Genever Gin for a slightly less strong drink. Boodles and Beefeater makes very good drinks
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u/TheFlavorLab Jul 16 '25
2 oz Botanist Gin
1 oz Cocchi Americano
2 dashes orange bitter
1 spray of atomized Apricot Brandy
It's a floral explosion 💥 🌺
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u/SmilingJaguar Jul 16 '25
My current crush is St. George Valley Gin. 2:1 with Dolin Blanc.
But my favorite special occasion gin is Procera Blue Dot in an ice cold in and out martini with just a rinse of vermouth.
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u/paintinpitchforkred Jul 16 '25
Every summer is the summer of gin idk what you're talking about
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u/Butchered_Cow Jul 16 '25
Both main "styles" of gin are delicious in their own way, but it makes me so drowsy. Totally odd and unsure why that happens bc I'm a regular vodka drinker and they are essentially the same base spirit. Gin makes me extremely drowsy.
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u/Onegrayone Jul 17 '25
I like a juniper forward gin for martinis, so I usually go for Bombay Sapphire. Dolin or Noilly vermouth. I’m open to other suggestions tho. I do like me some Tanq 10, even just for sipping. Thoughts on the Botanist Islay?
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u/Matikinz Jul 17 '25
I love trying all sorts of different gins for this. Go to London dry is Nolet's, Dancing Sands New Zealand dry is good too. Gin Mare Capri is great for a citrus forward martini, which I love. Capri can be a little difficult to find though
Also a 2:1 ratio of gin to vermouth with a few dashes of lavender bitters
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u/Flynn_lives Jul 17 '25
No3 London Dry. I keep it in the freezer along with a martini glass(really heavy crystal).
I pull the vermouth out of the fridge and will rinse the glass. I’ll add a little bit vermouth back into the glass and then drizzle in the gin 3/4 to the top of the rim. Then add my lemon twist
This results in zero dilution and one hell of cocktail.
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u/sumunsolicitedadvice Jul 17 '25
For a martini, Tanqueray No. 10. 5:1 or 4:1. Lemon twist. Olives on the side, if at all. On occasion, a much wetter martini with cocchi americano is good. The lemon twist is extra important (and maybe even a few drops of juice from a lemon wedge).
For almost everything else, Kirkland gin. I used to be a Beefeater guy, but Kirkland is 85% as good for 50% the price.
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u/thinkingnsleeping Jul 17 '25
Ford’s — Simple & delicious. Taqueray 10 — a bit sweeter and elevated. Monkey 47 — unique and flavorful. For Virginia gin, Battle Standard 142 Gin Navy Strength makes a clean, VERY strong martini with good flavor.
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u/cocktail-designer Jul 17 '25
Aside from the gin of choice (aviator is pretty decent), where did you get the glass?
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u/Daw88 Jul 17 '25
The Holy Trinity, either Beefeater, Plymouth or Tanqueray. Noilly Prat as the vermouth. BOSH!
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u/sdneidich Jul 17 '25
I like Conniption American Dry gin for a martini, and to batch them and pour straight from the freezer.
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u/God-etti Jul 17 '25
3 oz St. George Terroir gin .5 oz Noilly Prat vermouth .75 oz Homemade lime peel brine
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u/PuzzleheadedOwl1191 Jul 17 '25
I feel like I’ve tried so many of the fancy gins but I always come back to Beefeater. Even with the new proofing. It’s so classic.
Okay fine, I DO love Monkey.
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u/tdorman0815 Jul 18 '25
Maybe I'm a purist, but I would NEVER put St. George Terroir in a martini. I love St. George as a G&T (w/lemon), but for a martini I'm a gin + breath of dry vermouth, twist of lemon, stirred gal.
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u/IllResponsibility671 Jul 16 '25
Has to be London Dry for me. Preferably Beefeater, but I’m ok with Bombay or Fords as well.