S.I.P.#19 – Martini, The Beginning

Итак, рад в очередной раз поздравить всех с нашим, уже 19-м по счету онлайн-мероприятием русско-говорящих блогеров-имбайберов. Сегодняшнее наш ивент примечателен еще и тем, что он становится первым в рамках грандиозного проекта по исследованию Короля Всех Коктейлей – Мартини в русскоязычной коктейльной блогосфере 8) Так начнем же отдавать должное этой Звезде!

Оговорюсь сразу, несмотря на мной же заявленные цели, я не собираюсь в этом посте пересказывать кучу баек и легенд о происхождении коктейля Мартини. На самом деле, я по большей части уже сделал это в Книге, где вы на с. 78 найдете по крайней мере отсылки к самым распространенныем байкам, там же вы, кстати, можете зарядиться моим энтузиазмом, если вы еще не ;)

Нет, в этом посте, мы, пусть и коротко [ ;) ], остановимся на реконструкции самого первого достоверного книжного упоминаниях рецепта коктейля под названием Martini и, а также рассмотрим небольшую [ ;) ] библиографеческую справку по коктейлям с вермутами Золотого Века.

Конечно, изначально я думал сделать на S.I.P. что-нибудь грандиозное, ну знаете, как всегда куча источников, куча рецептов, ультимейт версия, но оно оказалось грандиозным с самом начала и без всякого ультимейт :) Т.е. несмотря на то, что я пью античное фактически с конца января, этот пост будет посвящен всего одному коктейлю. Однако, начнем с начала.

The Martini ala 1900 | ScienceOfDrink.com

Просмотрев более дюжины источников конца XIX начала ХХ века1, мне удалось славно погрузиться в атмосферу того времени [тем более, я уже давно весь такой атмосферный, в том плане, что сладкую ароматику я люблю давно и часто о ней пишу]. Без сомнения, приход вермута в коктейль в роли основного модификатора – это одно из величайших событий коктейльной истории. Итальянское изобретение – вермут появился в США в 1860-х и с тех пор был обречено попасть в такую модную вещь как коктейль, скорость этого попадания (на минуточку чуть ли не 20 лет), я уверен не должна смущать современного потребителя – по меркам тех неспешных времен, это почти мгновенно, вспомним хотя бы, что от момента первого словарного определения слова cocktail, до выпуска первой хрестоматии прошло 60 лет! Отсутствие агрессивного маркетинга, всяких там паблик релейшинз, неспешные и ограниченные коммуникации… конечно, 20 лет – это очень быстро 8) Естесственно, в это тяжело поверить во время, когда какой-нибудь совершенно новый ликер попадает в тренд через месяц после запуска :)

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Negroni Flip

Well, being a happy possessor of two antica formula red vermouths, a bottle of Campari and a bottle of gin, I’ve practically forgotten all other cocktails for the past three weeks at least. As a matter of fact, I had a similar flash sometimes in the past, for example with such awesome cocktails as Manhattan, Clover Club or Mai Tai. You might have felt something similar – you discover a cocktail and just realize that there is no reason to drink anything else. You are enjoining this libation day by day exploring a ton of ingredient combinations, comparing favorite brands and experimenting with proportions or serving or garnishes, whatever. But sooner or later you also just understand that you should move on. And here you need something bright, something especial for closing the chapter.

So, for ending this Negroni flash I picked out the Negroni Flip – a modern curious Negroni-themed concoction that, as I could find out, had been created in a Seattle based restaurant Delancey. The recipe had been shared on Food52.com about a year ago by, if I’m not mistaken, creators or just inspirators – Molly Wizenberg and Brandon Pettit. Actually, I’m absolutely sure, it is an exciting idea to combine two [of my favorite] cocktail things – Negroni and flip. I was really curious how it would work together.

Negroni Flip | ScienceOfDrink.com

Negroni Flip

30 ml gin
30 ml sweet vermouth
30 ml Campari
7 ml rich sugar syrup (1:2)
1 whole egg
Add all the ingredients in a shaker and shake very hard without ice, then add ice and chill the cocktail. Strain into a tumbler and garnish with an orange peel.

This Negroni Flip turned out (as expected! as expected!) to be absolutely great! Everything is right in this cocktail – whole egg, as in a real flip (it’s known, that yolk has its own taste which actively forms a taste, not only a foamy texture), and a spoon of rich sugar syrup, which helps to combine whole Negroni with a whole egg and, in fact, makes the cocktail.

Negroni Flip has a distinguished sweet-and-bitter-herbal-savory taste with a bright recognizable bitter note of Campari, velvety herbal richness of vermouth and gin. Also it acquires a wonderful super-smooth texture from a beaten egg. As а result we have a velvety-smooth, well-balanced, bitter-sweet cocktail. An excellent cocktail, undoubtedly, or, rather, an excellent flip 8)

Negroni Flip | ScienceOfDrink.com

Now, some words about ingredients. Negroni Flip was noted to need quite a powerful, potent gin (which can stand against a whole egg), and a similar vermouth. My ultimate choice in Negroni Flip is my new Cinzano 1757, which, thanks to its a magnificent bitter artemisia note, works here exceptionally well.

And finally I have to write something about raw eggs in cocktails. As I came to realize this is sort of a tradition to bring this kinda pep talk to readers about eggs in cocktails at the end of every such post :) So, let’s start: Don’t be afraid of them… eggs really can give us huge pleasure… but remember about salmonella (of course, of course…)… so… use only fresh organic eggs from a local farmer’s market … (you had better know the farmer for ages. What kind of stuff does he feed down to his chickens?)… or use pasteurized eggs… if you believe in pasteurization… or just rely on good luck… if you believe in good luck… or… read something much serious about that for example here 8)

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Contessa Cocktail (and Negroni Antica Formula)

Well, despite having quite a difficult time for cocktail blogging (my country is still under a villainous attack), I still continue my exploring of such a great phenomenon as the American Cocktail. However, today I am going to deal with two totally European (specifically Italian) things that had been a great part of an American Cocktail practically since the Golden Age. I am talking about red vermouth and one of the best cocktails which utilize it – Negroni Cocktail.

I have at least two big reasons to review my love for Negroni – one is getting an acquaintance with a pretty nice twist on a classic Negroni – the Contessa Cocktail and the other is a long-awaited testing of Carpano Antica Formula – one of the most celebrated sweet vermouths.

This post was started right before the New-Year’s Day while I was looking through my site stats (You see, WordPress.com sends a pretty cute yearly review every December). And I was really surprised that my last posts (I mean, posts that were written during the last few years) weren’t as popular as the earlier ones (about all kinds of stuff like Creme Brulee Martini, Long Island Iced Tea or Passion Cosmo :) Seemingly, my new, refined cocktail taste, which has been forming for years, does not satisfy an average reader… But similar things I notice also with my guests, when trying to share with them my latest favorite concoctions. Actually it does not bother me that much ;) , but sometimes I am thinking of, you know, popularizing of the cocktail culture, so I should be ready to offer my guests something more acceptable as an entry point in a wonderful world of True Cocktails.

Negroni and Contessa | ScienceOfDrink.com

There is usually no problem to offer such a drink to a newbie if we speak about highballs, sours or tikis. But if we speak about aromatic cocktails, it seems to be an issue. Especially it is difficult in case of Negroni – undoubtedly, one of the best aromatic cocktails in the world.

Obviously the main challenge of aromatic cocktails is a combination of strength and bitterness. And we must admit it, not all people are ready to take it up 8) At any rate – from the first sip (but, probably, many of them would be ready for a second one, if only the first wasn’t SO bitter ;)

Thus, this challenging bitterness of Negroni, which is considered as its main merit by the connoisseurs, might be an insuperable difficulty for a newbie. Maybe it sounds grotesque to somebody, but it is a bitter truth in the case of Negroni 8) It contains a significant amount of Campari – a palatable bitter from Italy, which, by the way, wasn’t banned even during Prohibition as a result of its strong bitter taste. No joke!

That is why I guess it is so important to have some trick or some secret that will be able to make your favorite Negroni slightly more palatable (but not worsen it!) for your dear newbie but still so enjoyable for you 8) And, it seems, now I’ve found such a trick! 8)

Contessa and Negroni Cocktail | ScienceOfdrink.com

As a matter of fact this is absolutely easy and obvious – just switch “the Great and Powerful» Campari to a thing, that sometimes is defined as baby-Campari, – the Aperol.

Campari and Aperol are pretty similar – both are classified as aperitif, both are based on some herbal stuffs – herbs, roots, citrus fruits etc. Finally they both have a bright red color! And they both have an unique rich bitter-sweet taste which encapsulates great Italian lifestyle feeling. So, even though they have different bitterness and alcohol content, they have similar style.

I tasted this switch in the Contessa cocktail, the recipe for which I had found on Serious Eats a long time ago. But it may be not an original idea – there are many bartenders who come up with this trick. So, this name is relatively nominal.

Aperol Negroni aka Contessa Cocktail | ScienceOfDrink.com

Aperol Negroni aka Contessa Cocktail

30 ml gin
30 ml sweet vermouth
30 ml Aperol
Stir with ice and strain over a large ice cube into an old-fashioned glass. Garnish with an orange twist.

I think, the best definition for Contessa Cocktail is a bland Negroni. As for me, it is still a good Negroni because it still is a rich, bitter-sweet, full of herbs, botanicals, species, velvety smooth aromatic drink. The only difference is an absence of a challenge 8) But if it is necessary, you can explore No Baloney Negronianother Aperol Negroni version from Camper English ;)

As I could ascertain Contessa cocktail was an universal favourite with many people, who usually didn’t enjoy aromatic cocktails, especially women. So, this cocktail gave me an opportunity to share my love for Negroni with some people I love 8) Perfect!

And finally I want to say some words about a true classic Negroni, especially about the red vermouth in it.

Negroni Cocktail Antica Formula | ScienceOfDrink.com

Can you belive it, that in spite of being a huge fan of aromatic cocktails, especially Martinez, Negroni, Manhattan, I have never tasted such an exciting and famous rosso vermouth as Carpano Antica Formula? Actually this vermouth is absolutely unavailable on the Ukrainian market as well as in the duty-free shops that were visited by my wife 8) So, I always contented myself with available rosso vermouths – such as Martini & Rosso, Cinzano and Gancia and, I’m pretty sure, I always obtained good results [Certainly I avoid using cheap local vermouths or suspiciously cheap brands]. But, of course, I had been dreaming about Carpano Antica Formula for a long time.

The reason of this long-term dreaming was so obvious. A vast majority of American cocktail bloggers, bartenders, enthusiasts consider Carpano Antica Formula the best rosso vermouth in the world and the most authentic ingredient for many classic vermouth libations, especially Manhattan [even though it is vermouth alla vaniglia – a slightly different kind of vermouth than a regular rosso vermouth di Torino]. So, I could not slur the fact over and I must have made quite an effort to obtain this legendary vermouth and scrutinize it. I was extremely curious whether it could bring something new and unique to my beloved cocktails. I started with a Negroni Cocktail.

The Negroni Cocktail | ScienceOfDrink.com

Negroni Cocktail

30 ml gin
30 ml sweet vermouth
30 ml Campari
Stir with ice and strain over a large ice cube into an old-fashioned glass. Garnish with an orange wedge.

Before describing my impressions of a Negroni Cocktail with Carpano Antica Formula vermouth, let me point out some main Negroni characteristics which make a Negroni Negroni. Strong bitterness. Herbal richness. A powerful palate full of botanicals. A well balanced bitter-sweet drink. Theoretically, a difference between two good Negronis may be attributed to the peculiar properties of gin / rosso vermouth. Also, the sweetness of vermouth matters. Being a protagonist of an ancient cocktail feeling, or, in simpler terms, having a sweet tooth, I prefer cocktails balanced on the sweet side and, consequently, I love really sweet sweet vermouth in my cocktails 8) Thus, I’ve preferred Gancia Rosso in my Negronis for a long time.

Well, getting back to the point, the Negroni Cocktail with Carpano Antica Formula vermouth was perfect! So rich. So flavorful. With a palate full of herbs, roots and, well, beans ;) With an extremely pleasant vanilla note. Great! But… You know… It wasn’t greater than my regular Negroni with a Gancia Rosso 8) Rather different, yes, great, but not better. And I don’t think that it is something bad ;)

Negroni Cocktail | ScienceOfDrink.com

As it often happens, life made my cocktail adventures even more interesting – as soon as I possessed the Carpano Antica Formula I suddenly ran into another fancy red vermouth product – Cinzano 1757, so I had a great opportunity to organize a real «Antica Formula» red vermouth contest 8) [As a matter of fact an Ukrainian label of Cinzano 1757 vermouth contains such a signature, also the Gancia Rosso Vermouth label has signatures «1850» and «Antica Ricetta», so, they match this contest too ;)]

Straight up, on the rocks or in the Negroni – neither could let me pick a winner. In fact, as such a cool vermouth adept as Martin Doudoroff notices, there isn’t a champion platonic ideal :) At least all of these three «antica formula» vermouths are great products which give rich, deep, powerful, very aromatic cocktails. So cool. So distinguished. Just as I love 8)

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