A Lesson In Making a Martini

Good news! Our school district has announced that they will be sending the kids back to school in April. Of course, they will only have spots for the children who said they wanted in-person learning in a random survey sent out before we switched schools. So, I have spent all of yesterday searching through emails trying to find a link to this survey, no luck, and most of this morning emailing various school officials trying to get a new link. Some times you just feel like you need a big old glass of Gin, or maybe that’s just me. Luckily for us all, with the addition of just one or two ingredients you can make that glass of gin into a socially acceptable, and stylish martini! While drinking a martini before ten in the morning might still get some looks, I propose that they’re just jealous. 

My Nana taught me how to make a Gin martini, and it really was just a room temperature glass of Beefeater with a drop of dry vermouth (that they did not refrigerate and was probably older than me) some ice, and a lemon twist, maybe. So when I found out that you could season a martini with vermouth (not just an unwanted necessity for social acceptance) and bitters, it was pretty world changing. The other day I felt like a wanted a martini, but make it feel like spring, so I added some lavender bitters to one of my favorite gins,  and instead of dry vermouth, I added Lillet for just a hint of sweetness and a sublet fruit aspect. I’m not positive, but I think Nana would approve.

Lavender Martini
2 1/2 oz. Highclere Castle gin *gifted
1/2 oz. Lillet blanc
2-3 dashes Scrappy Bitters lavender bitters *gifted

Combine everything in a shaker with ice and shake until very chilled. Strain into a coupe.

Cheers!