The Gibson

Just my opinion; but a Martini or a Gibson made without Noilly Prat Extra Dry Vermouth isn't worth drinking. There are a handful of other, interesting, exotic vermouths from around the world, but they are strictly experiments. Nice places to visit, wouldn't want to live there. And I am 3-1 gin-to-vermouth. That's because, with Noilly Prat, I'm drinking good vermouth. Anything less than Noilly Prat, I can sort of understand why a consumer might not like so much vermouth.

The Gibson is my cocktail of choice (I prefer it with Bombay Sapphire) but out here in the Boston suburbs, few bars have the onions. It takes like nothing else and I wish others would join me in this delicious drink.

Make the pickled onions from scratch (see NYT recipe) which are much more flavorful than the store bought type. Use 1-2 onions and don't add the brine to the cocktail (i.e., not "dirty") which overpowers the gin and vermouth. I made two versions of Gibsons: one with Gordon's and the other with Bombay Sapphire, both with Dolin vermouth. Preferred the Gordon's as the Bombay already has enough going on with the many botanicals in it.

Looking at this pickling recipe, you have approximately a 1/3 chance of having one of the two cloves end up in a batch.
OR - should you run the spices through a grinder (or at least the cloves) to assure an even mixture? I assume that this was originally intended to make five pounds of onions at a whack

I've experimented a lot with different gins, vermouths and proportions and landed on 4:1 Botanist Gin to Dolin Vermouth de Chambery Dry. I prefer a twist of lemon, but olives or onions are fine, too. Try it. I guarantee you'll like it.

When my wife and I can't get to sleep, a martini or Gibson is often the answer. We go the shaken not stirred route as this chills our drinks to a delightfully cold temperature in moments. We experimented to find our preferred gin but still we agree with the author: don't stint on the vermouth. And with that, good-night.

I was a young (17) underwriter for Crum and Foster Insurance. Making outlandish decisions regarding how much coverage of a risk we would assume. Feted at lunch by the brokers who brought in the risk they would offer their own expertise on how to drink. My drink of choice had been gin on the rocks as I disliked vermouth. Vic explained how the ratio of gin in a Gibson would not offend my taste while also removing the stigma of being a cocktail hayseed.
Thanks Vic fifty years later

This 5:1 ratio of gin to vermouth is what my step-father learned during the war. I've been told that this amount of vermouth was needed because the gin back then was so poor. He never changed the gin he used - he thought gin was gin, so why not buy the cheap stuff - so the martinis he made for me were certainly improved by so much vermouth. But gins like Berkshire Mountain Distillery's Greylock Gin has such a great flavor you don't want to cover it over with (too much) vermouth.

My dad introduced me to the combination of 2 parts gin and 1 part vermouth with olives and cocktail onions. He called this hybrid a Martini. (Haddon House offers the only cocktail onions I've found that are usable for this purpose. Anyone know of any other brands that aren't too large or sweet?)