Dry Martini 2:1
Stir ∙ 3 min ∙ 32% ABV ∙
The Dry Martini 2:1 is a stirred spirit-forward cocktail of London dry gin and dry vermouth in a 2:1 ratio, served up in a chilled martini glass. Cold and clean, with juniper leading and a dry, faintly herbal vermouth note underneath, closing on a crisp, almost saline finish — a slow-sipping aperitif.
Ingredients
1
Servings
Garnish
Instructions for 1 serving
- Pre-chill a glass
- Stir all ingredients with ice: London dry gin 60 mlDry vermouth 30 mlOrange bitters 2 dashes
- Fine strain into the chilled glass
- Garnish with olives or a lemon twist
Tips
- Stir gin and vermouth with large cubes for 20-25 seconds until the mixing glass feels ice-cold to the touch, avoiding over-dilution from over-stirring.
- Measure the 2:1 gin-to-vermouth ratio precisely; adding too little vermouth flattens the drink while too much masks the gin.
- Chill the martini glass in the freezer for at least 10 minutes beforehand so the stirred drink doesn't warm on contact.
- Express the lemon twist's oils over the surface before dropping it in, or skewer a single olive, but avoid using both garnishes at once.
History
The Dry Martini's exact origin is disputed: sources trace it to the Martinez, a sweeter gin-and-vermouth drink first recorded in Jerry Thomas's 1887 bartenders' guide and often linked to the Occidental Hotel in San Francisco or the town of Martinez, California, in the 1860s, while other accounts credit a bartender at New York's Knickerbocker Hotel around 1911 or 1912. An early recipe explicitly called a "Dry Martini Cocktail" appeared in William Boothby's 1907 guide, attributed to a Los Angeles bartender named Charlie Shaw, made with dry gin and dry vermouth. As London dry gin replaced the sweeter Old Tom style and dry vermouth replaced sweet, the drink grew progressively less sweet through the early 1900s. By 1922 the Martini had settled into its now-classic form of London dry gin and dry vermouth combined at a 2:1 ratio, stirred with ice and optionally a dash of orange or aromatic bitters, then strained up — the exact proportion this variation is built around. Later decades pushed the ratio drier still, to 3:1 in the 1930s and 4:1 in the 1940s, with even higher gin ratios becoming fashionable afterward, making the 2:1 build a marker of the drink's earlier, less austere form.
