Classic Martini

The martini is magical. In its simplest, most pure form it can be modest, even humble, but also grand and impressive. It’s a sophisticated drink and just holding one can feel like a boost in confidence. At Maison Premiere, a cocktail and oyster bar in Brooklyn, their signature martini is all about precision — the components, how cold they are, how the lemon twist is expressed over the drink; all elements lead to the most perfect rendition of the classic cocktail that is presented effortlessly. 

In their book The Maison Premiere Almanac, a stunning handbook for any cocktail, oyster, and cool bar enthusiasts alike, the authors describe what sets the martini category of drinks, which they call Bracing and Urbane, apart from others: “Such drinks require no time or place, no reason or mood. They are essential and universal, and we love them for their purity and their focused, keen-edged flavors. Diaphanous and often transparent in color, their crystalline clarity suggests action, lucidity and presence of mind, while inducing the opposite — an irony in which we should all rejoice.” I entirely agree — martinis are linear and refined, they should be taken seriously, but also should be celebrated, and enjoyed quickly while they’re perfectly cold. 

While there are more inventive martinis out there, Maison Premiere’s is classic, featuring dry vermouth, London Dry gin, and a touch of orange bitters that pairs well with the lemon twist which gets expressed over the drink as it is poured into the glass. Mansion Premiere’s martini is stirred generously and meticulously with ice with almost scientific specificity. The trick is to continually add ice to your mixing glass as you vigorously stir: “The challenge [of chilling the drink] becomes mathematical: the drink must be stirred quickly enough to achieve maximal chill while avoiding over dilution. You have a small window of time to get it cold enough.” 

The best companion to Maison Premiere martini, besides another one ordered and on the way, is a salty, flavorful oyster. Sand Dune oysters from Prince Edward Island. The Sandy Dune oysters have an almost vegetal salinity and buttery, savory finish. The clean, citrusy notes in the cocktail counter the herbaceous and sweet quality of the oysters. While Champagne is great, take it from the oyster obsessives behind Maison Premiere, martinis really are oysters best friends. “While the representative Maison Premiere cocktail is inventive and idiosyncratic, the martini—which would never be described so— is taken very seriously here, in part because the importance of our raw bar, as the pleasure of swallowing a raw oyster is exponentially heightened when chased by a sip of martini.” — Lucy Simon