Venetian

February 26, 2010 (Day 27) — Venetian

So, I’ve kind of been sticking with the simple cocktail recipes as of late, so why not mix it up with something a little bit complicated on a chilled Friday night?

This martini has several different ingredients that all work together well to create something that’s better than the sum of their parts. I’ve been on an “Art of the Bar” kick lately, so I’m going to keep going with that, especially now that we have some less routine items (Campari, amaretto). I’ll make it short and sweet since it’s Friday night and I’m sure you’re all dying to get out and start partying, but can’t bring yourselves to tear away from your computer until I update.

So, here’s the Venetian:

• 2 oz gin
• .5 oz amaretto
• .5 oz Campari
• .5 oz dry vermouth

Pour your ingredients into a cocktails mixing glass, stir for 20 to 30 seconds until cold, pour into chilled martini glass.

It looks good, no?

The genius of this drink is the balance of flavors. The amaretto by itself is overpoweringly sweet. The Campari, too bitter. Mix them together with the gin and the vermouth, however, and you have a killer flavor mixture. It’s odd at first. It’s hard to tell if you’re going to like it. The almondy-sweetness comes first and then the bitterness of the Campari sweeps in afterward to play cleanup.

It’s a drink that grows on you. The more you sip it, the better it is.

The Venetian Verdict: Keep it.

Genieße das Leben ständig!

Du bist länger tot als lebendig!

— Mark