Here’s another single use sterling silver gadget, a gift from Sister two Christmases ago… It’s a limited edition cocktail strainer designed for Christofle by Adam Tihany and Thomas Keller, my idol (French Laundry, Per Se and Bouchon). It’s been sitting in the closet for months waiting to be taken for a test drive… so what better time than New Year’s Eve to put it to good use?
The drink worthy of a Keller strainer? James Bond’s iconic martini, the “Vesper” of course. Three measures of Gordon’s gin, one measure of vodka, 1/2 measure of Kina Lillet (it’s NOT vermouth), lots of ice, shaken, not stirred, and served in a deep champagne goblet (a Baccarat one in this case) with a large thin slice of lemon peel. Ahhh. It’s WICKED. I am sipping one now (albeit made with vermouth as Kina Lillet was nowhere to be found) before cooking a simple dinner for New Year’s Eve. Wicked. :) My initials aren’t B., J.B., for nothing. Hahaha. :)
But frankly, I like the cocktail better when served in a more traditional martini glass, in this third photo. As the drink mellows, you see a clear, slightly yellowish liquid that is still very cold, very powerful and slightly bitter. If I finish this glass, that will be the end of dinner. In a fine mood, Marketman, family & crew wish you a wonderful New Year’s Eve celebration and great prosperity, health and happiness in 2010. The reason for the bowl of chocolate coins beside the martini? If you drink enough Vespers, they might just turn into the real thing. Cheers!
36 Responses
From our family to yours, happy new year!!! Cheers to a great 2010!!!!
we’re still several hours yet from new year (from where i am) but i greet everyone here a Prosperous 2010!!!!
I love this cocktail…a bit too potent to chug as I wait for midnight, though! But a perfect drink the welcome the new year!
Manigong Bagong Taon sa inyong lahat!
Happy New Year!
I’ll be in Manila by tomorrow evening…and in Cebu sometime within the couple of weeks..w00t! Zubuchon here I come! :D
HAPPY HAPPY NEW YEAR, Philippines!!!! we’re 12-13 hrs behind here in the East coast, so we’re still working…SNOW here!! envy the warm weather in the Phil..
enjoy the potent drink MM….
Manigong Bagong Taon sa inyong lahat sa Pilipinas!
be careful of that drink MM!
Happy New Year Everyone!!! Goodbye 2009 – had a great year! HELLO 2010!
happy new year MM and family plus the crew.
Cheers and Happy Prosperous New Year. Feel like having a martini.
Ah, my kind of cocktail–colourless and clear (none of those sugary fruity milky concoctions with miniature parasols allowed in our home!). Frankly I am not really a fan of most martini glasses…whoever came up with that unstable stemmed design was not in the clearest of minds. I finally found a glass (handmade by a studio in Denmark) that keeps the conical shape, but has essentially no stem and has a weighted base, and so is considerably more stable (even if you are one of those who must have more than one pre-dinner drink).
I believe “Kina” Lillet is now labelled simply Lillet (Blanc, not Rouge). Since the Lillet formulas were changed decades ago, both the blanc and rouge versions are less bitter than what Fleming referred to in the 1950’s. So I would substitute not the current Lillet Blanc (which I actually do like, on its own) but a French vermouth such as Dolin. I am a long-time fan of vermouth as an aperitif, and also enjoy cooking with it. One of my “signature” recipes is rabbit braised with two or three kinds of olives and vermouth.
BTW I personally find that shaking a martini yields a quite noticeably diluted drink, compared to one that is stirred. So while I admire Mr. Bond’s suavity, I beg to differ on this point and adhere to the “stir” school for clear/colourless cocktails. Cheers! :)
Cheers to you MM and family!
BTW, Crispy Pata made to to this year’s Saveur 100. Check it out.
Happy new year everyone!
Happy New Year MM and family! :D
Happy New Year! All the very best to Mrs MM, The Teen and you!
Looking forward to many more meals with you and the family!!
happy new year!
kurzhaar, Happy New Year! The martini glasses in the early 1900’s did not have a long stem and were smaller in capacity and you can still find them at vintage stores or auction houses. I have a set of 12 Steuben martini glasses from the early 1920’s that are only about 4 1/2 inches tall, conical on both ends and with the signature teardrop in the stem and very stable due to the heavy crystal. Steuben has reissued some of the teardrop series. Makes a lot of sense over the tippy martini tall glasses. The mixologists have gone back to the shorter vintage glasses and if you have any neighbors in their 90’s like I do they have cupboards full of these short stemmed glasses.
I guess I’ll have to send a bottle of Lillet to MM in the next BB box. What happened to the matching stirrer? Didn’t you get one, too? If not, I’ll try to locate mine and give it to you in time for next New Year’s Eve martini.
All the best for 2010 to all Marketmanila readers.
Happy New Year MM & Family!!! Welcome 2010!!!
HAPPY NEW YEAR MM, Mrs MM, Teen, Sister and the Crew. May you have more blessing this year and the years to come !!! God Bless
May 2010 bring everyone GOOD HEALTH, PEACE AND CONTINUED SUCCESS IN ALL YOUR FUTURE ENDEAVOURS!
To Apicio (wherever you are…are you OK? missed your comments! To Silly Lolo…MAY YOU HAVE MANY MORE YEARS OF SILLYNESS AND GOOD HEALTH TO BOTH YOU AND SILLY LOLA!
MC…may you have access again to Internet at work!
Ted: Maraming Salamat!!! Success on the HAM !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
DOC: I have a friend here who does lechon in her garage using a convection oven …not the home version but the bakery convection oven. The piggy is the de leche one since that is the only size it can fit in the convection oven. She is well known for her lechon! Maybe you can invest one when you go back home to US. As for the little piggy, go on US Craigslist and source out those organic farms.
You are the Man MM! That is the way to bring in the New Year. Our love to you and your family.
Happy New Year Sister! I did look at vintage crystal glasses once upon a time, but was already in the avoid-lead-crystal phase of my life then. :) The glasses I bought in Denmark are lovely (not crystal) and are more than sufficient…90+% of any alcohol consumed in our household is red wine. But should anyone be looking for glasses, yes, I do not recommend the typical long-stemmed martini glass.
I enjoy Lillet blanc straight, over an ice cube or two, with a slice of citrus (blood orange if you have it, and fabulous with Thai lime) and perhaps a leaf of a mint or pineapple sage. I am less of a fan of Lillet rouge, althoughI know others who prefer it to the blanc. But then I also prefer white vermouth to red vermouth.
No cocktails last night…a California pinot noir and a vintage Bordeaux with dinner and a beautifully creamy rose Champagne at midnight. Even the various dogs present got a lick of the Champagne (I think they like the yeasty smell of champagne).
Happy new year to all!
Happy New Year MM & Family, Sister & The Crew! Here’s to a peaceful and blessed 2010. Cheers!
Happy New Year MM
Happy New Year MM! I stumbled on your blog maybe a year ago but have rediscovered it about 2 days ago after googling for pinoy food blogs (and I can’t remember now how I even got to you page). I have spent the better part of the last 3 days reading your archives and boy have I been glued to my seat. I have just finished reading the post about the emailed siling labuyo request – up to the last comment! Now I have to get on with trying the Inasal na Manok!
Here’s to “hanging out” with you this year! Cheers from San Jose, CA!
Maayong pagsaulog sang tuig Dos Mil Diyes sa Pamilya Marketmanila. Kabay nga bugayan kita sang madinuagon nga kabuhi nga mahilway kag puno sang grasya. Kabay pa nga mangin malayo kita sa masakit. Kag kabay pa nga aton padayunon ang aton pagka-isog sa pagsugata sang mga problema dulot sang aton pagsalig nga tanan nga kabudlayan aton malutas sa grasya sang aton Maka-ako.
In English…. Happy New Year!
happy new year to you and your family and crew.
Happy New Year to yo MM, your family and crew.
Bettyq, Happy New year to you too. Does your friend take orders?
Happy New Year to the entire MarketManila community, especially to the ringmaster, Marketman.
MM, Happy New Year! God bless you, family and crew.
Thank you for sharing your nice blogs.
Hey MM, Happy New Year!
Do keep writing. We look forward to your culinary tips & adventures.
reminds me a lot of what Doreen Fernandez used to do. A lot of us foodies do miss her.
Cheers!
HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!!!
Fish pan alert! hehehe, we also have this kind of gadget in which I thought it is used for seperating the egg yolk from the white when making leche flan, (stupid me!) hehehe but in fairness, it did work! :-)
my kinda post. hope you had a great nye!
belated happy new year to everyone! =) so hard to go back to work today. my mind is still on vacation mode hehe
Belated Happy New Year! I had a martini on Jan 2, but not a JB one, just a simple classic concoction. Strong enough to keep me from freezing to death up north.