The Martini is one of the most well-known cocktails from screen (thanks of course to James Bond, who likes them shaken, not stirred). The undercover spy not only popularised the classic Martini to astounding levels but also invented a brand-new variation.
Like Bond’s particular version of Martini, there are many cocktails cited by characters from major movies and television series that have increased their appeal. Here are a few that you might recognise.
FRENCH 75 (Casablanca, Oscar winner 1944)
Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman regularly sipped on this sophisticated and refreshing cocktail in the 1944 classic.
Glass: Chilled champagne flute
Ingredients:
20ml Tanqueray No. 10
10ml lime juice
10ml sugar syrup
Chilled Sparkling wine to top
Method:
Add all the ingredients except sparkling wine to a cocktail shaker.
Add ice cubes and shake hard.
Strain without ice.
Top with chilled sparkling wine.
Add a garnish of lemon or grapefruit peel.
GIBSON MARTINI (The Queen’s Gambit, Golden Globe Award Winner, 2021)
The Gibson is the Martini’s savoury cousin. It uses a pickled onion in place of the typical olive to add an umami undertone to the classic drink. It was the iconic cocktail of choice for the main character Beth and her adopted mother in The Queen’s Gambit.
Glass: Chilled coupe / martini
Ingredients:
60ml Tanqueray No. 10
5ml dry vermouth
Method:
Add all the ingredients to a chilled mixing glass.
Add ice cubes.
Stir to chill and dilute a little (30 stirs should be good)
Strain it without ice into a chilled glass.
Garnish with cocktail onions
MINT JULEP (The Great Gatsby, Grammy nominee, 2014)
This is a whisky-based iconic cocktail that is incredibly easy to make. In the 2014 Grammy-nominated movie The Great Gatsby, the drink was used as the epitome of decadence. The notion originated when Daisy Buchanan (Carey Mulligan) – Gatsby’s love interest – suggests cold long baths are a place to have a Mint Julep in the midst of a heated argument on a heated trip to Manhattan. “A drink made for a hot day, the Mint Julep must be served very cold,” she observes.
Glass: Julep or rocks
Ingredients:
60ml The Singleton 12 years old
10ml Sugar syrup or Honey syrup (mix equal parts of water and honey)
Fresh mint leaves
Method:
Add all the ingredients to a chilled Julep or rocks glass.
Add crushed ice.
Mix with bar spoon.
Add garnish of fresh mint sprig (tap them on the rim of the glass for freshness before putting them in.)
RED EYE (Cocktail, Golden Globe and Grammy Nominee, 1989)
This iconic cocktail is the infamous signature cocktail from the Tom Cruise starring movie Cocktail. It is mentioned as a cure for hangovers. It is a concoction that elevates the cocktail experience into a whole new category!
Glass: Beer glass or highball
Ingredients:
30ml Talisker 10 years old
60ml tomato juice
Salt
Chilled lager beer
Method:
Rim a chilled glass with salt (optional).
Add all the ingredients except beer (Add pinch of salt if not added on the rim)
Stir to mix.
Top with beer
Add a slice of lime as garnish.
COSMOPOLITAN (Sex And The City, Golden Globe Awards Nominee, 2004)
The classic Cosmopolitan is a very simple drink that is one of the most popular cocktails of all time. Sex and the City made it famous when it became the drink of choice of the show’s glamorous Manhattan women. It soon became the ultimate girly drink, even if it’s perfect for everyone alike.
Glass: Coupe or Martini
Ingredients:
45ml Ketel One vodka
15ml orange liquor
10ml fresh lime juice
30ml cranberry juice
Method:
Add all the ingredients a cocktail shaker.
Add ice cubes and shake hard.
Strain without ice
Spray orange zest and then drop in in the glass, as garnish.
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