A Martini for the Whiskey Drinker

[Old No7]

My wife loves her "Cosmo's" Martinis and every once in awhile, we'll end up at a bar that serves Martini's as drink specials and she is always encouraging me to get one. Typically, I don't get one, as they're pretty pricey at $10 or $12 per -- and I can buy a lot of 22's or primers for that much!

And you can probably tell from my Avatar and forum name that I don't drink much vodka these days... Ever actually...

Back a ways in early April, we had attended a destination wedding on the island of Jamaica and we stayed at a wicked awesome "all inclusive" resort named "Couples Swept Away" in Negril, located on the west coast -- which made for some awesome sunsets, by the way. ("No kids" allowed there, which was really nice!)

They had a really neat Martini Bar there and since you weren't paying (directly, that is...) for the drinks, she encouraged me to "man up" and have a Martini with her while she enjoyed her Cosmo, aka a Cosmopolitan. So I did her one better and "cowboy'd up" and perused the menu and picked out the one Martini that I thought would go well with my favorite -- Old No7, aka Jack Daniel's.

The bartender looked at me a little funny, but he man'd up and made it for -- and watched as I took the first sip...

Boy, was I right!!! It was great!!!

I had selected a "White Cosmopolitan", which is made from:
... 2 oz Vodka (but you know what I used instead!)
... 1 oz Cointreau (we use Triple Sec, as it's much cheaper and just as good)
... A splash of White Cranberry Juice (we do 1 oz or 1.5 oz, based on taste)
... Lime Juice (one big squeeze for me)

The White Cranberry Juice is lighter, sweeter and not as tart as the regular red cranberry juice, and I had to go to a number of stores to find it here in Maine. But wow, it makes for a very tasty Martini! Just as good as the ones on the island! Not too sweet, and without the "bite" that a good whiskey is known to have, and after I ordered one the first night, I got another (or two) the 2nd night. By the 3rd night, all the other guys from the wedding party and I were sitting there at the Martini Bar drinking our............

"Jackmo's"

That's what one of the 20-year olds called it, and the name has stuck.

On the last night there, the same bartender confided in me that he'd tried "3 at the end of his shift the night before" and he really liked them too, and he would suggest them to others who might be whiskey (or whisky) drinkers and were struggling with what to order.

Here's a pix of what they look like -- and you'll see I like the low "no stem" Martini glasses as they are easier to manage, sorta like a Saturday Night Special, I guess...

Jackmo (Small).jpg

Well that's it -- a Martini for the whiskey lover!

I am sure you could try this with Jim Beam, Maker's Mark, Jameson or some other whiskey (or whisky) too.

If you do, let me know how you like it!

Oh yeah -- here's one of those Jamaican Sunsets I was enjoying with my buddy Jack -- oh, and my wife too!

Jamaica 2018 DH (244).JPG

Bottoms up!!!

Old No7

[Ray]

I was raised a good Baptist so I know little about cocktails but except for Fleming's commander bond and his vodka martinis, I thought a martini was a 3/1 gin vermouth blend with a green olive garnish....

Once on a business trip far away from home i told myself to be brave and go down to the hotel lounge and try a martini.....read about them all my life but never tried one but I did try and like gin tonics....the other bar patrons were just a bunch of creepy-looking old guys with strange, sideways grins.....the bartender mixed and shook the martini as usual but served it in a heavy highball glass.....when he saw the puzzled look on my face he said with a wink...."there is some kind of a fag convention here this weekend and the normal high stemmed glass might get you some unwanted attention ! "

[Ysabel Kid]

Hmmm... this sounds like an experiment for this weekend!

[piller]

I have Tullamore Dew and Johnny Walker red at home. I think I will try one of them. I just am not a fan of Bourbon. We all have different likes and dislikes. It would be a boring world if we all liked the same things.

Oh! I also have some Bison Grass flavored Polish vodka that I received as a gift. I have been really hesitant to try it.

[HawkCreek]

I only have about two whiskeys that I truly like and enjoy (not that I will turn away a free drink) and neither are cheap. But if you really like rye whiskey (like I do) and want something a bit different try ordering a "sazerac" (and hope the bartender knows how to make a good one).

[gamekeeper]

You would get some mighty strange looks ordering a Martini in the pubs I used to drink in....

[Ray]

Poison Whiskey
Lynyrd Skynyrd

There was a Cajun baby, raised on Southern land
And so my kinfolks tell me, was a street-fightin' man.
Well, they rushed him down to see the doctor
"Hey doctor, won't you check his head?"
The only thing that was wrong with him
Was Johnny Walker's Red
He drank ole poison whiskey
'Til it killed him dead.

It happened back in the bayou many years ago
Satan came to take him and he did it real slow
Well, they rushed him back to see the doctor
The doctor just shook his head,
"Twenty years of rotgut whiskey
Done killed the poor man dead."
He drank ole poison whiskey
'Til it killed him dead.

Take a tip from me, people... brothers can't you see
Ain't no future in ole poison whiskey.
They're gonna rush you down to see the doctor,
The doctor's gonna shake his head.
The only thing he's gonna tell ya
"Stop drinkin' Johnny Walker's Red
Don't drink poison whiskey, don't you drink it boy.
Songwriters: EDWARD C. KING,RONNIE VAN ZANT
© Universal Music Publishing Group
For non-commercial use only.

[Ray]

You would get some mighty strange looks ordering a Martini in the pubs I used to drink in....

I read a lot of british mystery novels and short stories from the late victorian era through WW2 and the characters are always thirsty for a whiskey and soda.....then they mention gin and hot water when they are sick.....brandy neat to keep them from dying or to revive them from near death....brandy and soda when they have had an emotional shock.....a whiskey and soda or two or three for elevenses.....a pint or two or three of bitter ale with bread, cold meat, cheese and a boiled egg or two or three for luncheon with a gin and tonic or two or three on top of that for good digestion.....claret and or port with biscuits for high tea.....a pint or two or three of something frothy at a pub on the way home from work.....a whiskey and soda or an american cocktail or two or three before the dinner gong goes....claret or port with cigars after the ladies have left the dinner table.... and finally a whiskey and soda or two or three for a nightcap to encourage a sound sleep.....

do you englishers really drink that much ?

[Bill in Oregon]

I'm not much of a whiskey drinker -- or hard liquor drinker for that matter, being more of a beer guzzler.
I confess to enjoying an occasional Martini, though -- but please, with a good gin such as Plymouth, and shaken, not stirred. A nice, meaty Spanish Queen olive completes the tableau.

[gamekeeper]

You would get some mighty strange looks ordering a Martini in the pubs I used to drink in....

I read a lot of british mystery novels and short stories from the late victorian era through WW2 and the characters are always thirsty for a whiskey and soda.....then they mention gin and hot water when they are sick.....brandy neat to keep them from dying or to revive them from near death....brandy and soda when they have had an emotional shock.....a whiskey and soda or two or three for elevenses.....a pint or two or three of bitter ale with bread, cold meat, cheese and a boiled egg or two or three for luncheon with a gin and tonic or two or three on top of that for good digestion.....claret and or port with biscuits for high tea.....a pint or two or three of something frothy at a pub on the way home from work.....a whiskey and soda or an american cocktail or two or three before the dinner gong goes....claret or port with cigars after the ladies have left the dinner table.... and finally a whiskey and soda or two or three for a nightcap to encourage a sound sleep.....

do you englishers really drink that much ?

Yes, if you had to live here you'd drink that much too