Best Martini Toast Off

/ Toast Offs / By

We held off on the martini showdown for nearly a year because, let’s face it, this is the cocktail we knew we had to nail. The martini is sacred—everyone knows the ingredients, but everyone also has their own secret formula for the perfect pour. So, we set out to create a lineup of the most popular martini styles to capture the tastes of all our thirsty crew. After blind-tasting and ranking eight different martinis, we had a surprise twist: we asked everyone what they usually order at a bar. The big question—did they really pick the drink they swear by, or did their taste buds betray them?

Recounting the Tale

The evolution of the martini: The martini has evolved from its origins in the late 1800s, starting with the Martinez, a gin and sweet vermouth cocktail. By the early 1900s, the classic dry martini emerged, using dry gin and vermouth, with the 1920s favoring drier versions. The mid-20th century saw the rise of the vodka martini, popularized by figures like James Bond. In the 1990s, flavored martinis like the Cosmopolitan gained popularity. Today, there’s a renewed interest in classic gin martinis, with modern twists like dirty martinis.

Fun fact: the vodka martini was once cheekily called the “Kangaroo,” when Vodka first came stateside and was seen as exotic, proving this cocktail’s evolution has always had a wild side!

The Toast Off

Methodology

How it was executed.

  • 12 tasters
  • 8 martini recipes
  • All cocktails were batched, diluting them by weight based on build method (stirring vs. shaking), and frozen to allow for side by side tastings at extremely cold temperatures
  • All cocktails were served in identical glassware and without garnish
  • Each taster ranked each cocktail in order from worst to best for overall flavor, with additional tasting notes on each
  • All cocktails were measured strictly according to the recipe instructions but omitted any garnish or ice serving instructions as to keep each cocktail as identical in appearance as possible. Though a variety of olives and lemon peels were available on the side after the initial taste.

Ingredients

Everything we used to craft the menu.

  • Gin (Martin Millers)
  • Gin (Beefeater)
  • Gin (Plymouth)
  • Gin (Bombay)
  • Gin (Tanqueray)
  • Vodka (Ketel One)
  • Vodka (Belvedere)
  • Dry Vermouth (Dolin)
  • Dry Vermouth (Lillet Blanc)
  • Blanc Vermouth (Dolin)
  • Extra Dry Vermouth (Noilly Prat)
  • Orange Bitters
  • Champagne Vinegar
  • Mezzetta Colossal Castelvetrano Brine

Selection

How we curated the lineup. We wanted to lean more on the classic, dry, and dirty as opposed to the wet and reverse due to the popularity of this style and general preference of the tasting crowd.

  • James Bond: The Vesper, Vodka and Gin – Selected for its iconic role in introducing the shift from what was once considered a gin-only drink to a versatile cocktail that can also be made with vodka.
  • Cheese Gal: The Filthy Dirty Vodka Martini – Picked due to its rising popularity in modern cocktail culture, this dirty vodka martini has become a favorite choice in bars today.
  • Brian Wigginton: The Classic Vodka, Leaning Dry – Chosen to highlight a classic martini made with vodka, offering a similar profile to its gin counterpart, allowing for a comparison of preferences between the two.
  • Toasty Bird: The Dirty, Fat-Washed Vodka and Gin – Selected for its creative twist on the vesper, incorporating a subtle blue cheese flavor for a unique, yet polarizing take on this classic drink.
  • IBA: The Dry Gin, No Orange Bitters – This standard dry gin martini made the list due to its use of a premium gin, though its drier profile may differ from what is typically served in most bars.
  • Cocktail Chemistry / Atlas Bar: The Classic Gin with a Spin – Chosen for its famous Singaporean take on the martini, featuring blanc and vinegar instead of dry vermouth, and touted by many as the best martini they’ve ever had.
  • Punch / Harrison Ginsberg’s: The Classic Gin, Leaning Dry – Included to showcase the winning gin martini from a blind tasting in NYC, which closely resembles the famous Connaught bar martinis in the UK.
  • The Daisy: The Dirty Gin, Undiluted – Selected for its bold and intriguing take on an undiluted gin martini, balanced with a touch of salt—an experiment to see how this potent cocktail fares without water.

The Toast

What was said before we sipped.

“This week was a week, and I was taught to remember that joy and gratitude are a choice. And when I look at all these faces, friends who I consider forged family, I see nothing but joy and gratitude. So cheers!”
Elisa Wigginton

Results

And finally, what we thought about each.

Before we dive into the rankings, here’s a juicy tidbit: 5 out of our 12 tasters had their martini world turned upside down! They picked a totally different #1 favorite than what they usually order at the bar or mix up at home. Some were even shocked enough to say they’ll never order their martini the same way again. But as for the other 7? They were spot-on with their preferences, proving their martini instincts are razor-sharp!

Plus, 6 out of the 8 martini recipes snagged at least one first-place vote, with three different recipes each racking up three #1 spots! This made for the most evenly spread top rankings we’ve ever seen, once again proving just how personal—and wildly varied—people’s martini preferences really are.

Winner: IBA

60 ml (2 ounces) Gin (we used Martin Millers)
10 ml (.34 ounces) Dry Vermouth (we used Dolin Dry)

Love OR Hate: Cocktail Chemistry / Atlas

2 ounces of gin (Ford’s)
0.5 ounces of Vermouth Blanc (Mancino or Dolin Blanc preferred)
0.5 tsp Champagne Vinegar
2 dashes Orange Bitters

Full Rankings

8. Best For The Brave: Toasty Bird

Taster Notes: Blue cheese, funky, smooth. Overwhelming blue cheese notes, some found it to be too cheesy, with reactions ranging from “like a toilet” to “dirty cheese whore.”

Ingredients:

  • 2 ounces of blue cheese washed gin (Bombay)
  • 1.25 ounces of blue cheese washed vodka (Ketel One)
  • 0.25 ounce of dry vermouth
  • 0.25 ounce of blanc vermouth
  • 2 barspoons of Castelvetrano olive brine
  • Shaken

7. Best For Dirty Martini Fans: Cheese Gal

Taster Notes: Olive-forward, salty, extremely dirty. Some said it was “too dirty,” briny, and “tastes like the sea.”

Ingredients:

  • 3 ounces of vodka (Belvedere)
  • 2 ounces of Mezzetta Colossal Castelvetrano brine + 3 olives
  • Splash of Dolin Vermouth
  • Shaken

6. Best For Gin Purists: The Daisy

Taster Notes: Salty and clean, but earthy when warm. Described as boozy, vermouth-forward, with a subtle dirtiness akin to “a Frenchman fooling around.”

Ingredients:

  • 3 ounces of Plymouth gin
  • 0.5 ounce of Castelvetrano brine
  • 0.25 ounce of Dolin Blanc
  • 0.25 ounce of Dolin Dry
  • No dilution, put in freezer
  • Salt

5. Best For A Floral Twist: Cocktail Chemistry / Atlas Bar

Taster Notes: Sweet then bitter, with floral and citrus elements. Some noted a dirty gin quality, but others enjoyed its fruity notes and extra vermouth.

Ingredients:

  • 2 ounces of gin (Ford’s)
  • 0.5 ounces of Vermouth Blanc (Mancino or Dolin Blanc preferred)
  • 0.5 tsp Champagne vinegar
  • 2 dashes of orange bitters
  • Stirred

4. Best For A Vodka-Lemon Balance: Brian Wigginton

Taster Notes: Citrus-forward with orange on the nose. Some found it alcohol-forward and sweet, though it weakened as it warmed. Light and easy-drinking, with a high water content.

Ingredients:

  • 2 ounces of vodka (Belvedere)
  • 0.25 ounce of dry vermouth
  • 1 dash of orange bitters
  • Lemon twist
  • Shaken

3. Best For The Classic Gin Lover: Punch / Harrison Ginsberg

Taster Notes: Classic gin flavor with a slight citrus and floral finish. Some found it too juniper-forward, but overall better balanced than other versions.

Ingredients:

  • 2.5 ounces of Tanqueray gin
  • 0.5 ounce of Noilly Prat extra dry vermouth
  • 1 dash of orange bitters
  • Stirred

2. Best For James Bond Fans: Foodigenous / James Bond

Taster Notes: Boozy, yet clean. Both vodka and gin combine to create a smooth and sweet vesper, with a subtle juniper flavor.

Ingredients:

  • 3 ounces of gin (Beefeater)
  • 1 ounce of vodka (Ketel One)
  • 0.5 ounce of dry vermouth (Lillet Blanc)
  • Shaken

1. Best For Martini Perfection: IBA

Taster Notes: Balanced, classic, with notes of vermouth, pine, and sophisticated botanicals. Fruity on the nose, with a smooth, delicious finish that left many impressed.

Ingredients:

  • 60 ml (2 ounces) gin (Martin Miller’s)
  • 10 ml (.33 ounces) dry vermouth (Dolin)
  • Stirred
Scroll to Top