We never did get any sun today here in Brooklyn, and damned if I can figure out where I put that yardarm, so what say we call it Lo-Fi Lush Hour and t’hell with it? 
Today’s Toast is yet another avatar of the mighty Martini: in this case, the original, 1880s wet version that some call the Martinez (that was actually just one of the Martini’s grade-school nicknames, as it were, and never a drink in its own right). So soap ‘em up & dry ‘em off.
We start with Old Tom gin, the hot new import of the day. You can use one of these, or Hayman’s, but if you ain’t got no biggie, since OT is just London Dry plus a bit of sugar. Use an old-school London Dry, though.
Then it’s “vino vermouth,” as it was called: Italian, sweet and aromatic. From left to right, these are funky, big and vanillaish, and subtle and sly. You can also certainly use Martini & Rossi (actors...) or Cinzano or Cocchi.
There’s bitters in here, too. Old-fashioned aromatic-style ones are good. Abbott’s, too. Maybe less Angostura or Peychaud’s, but orange wil work.
Lemon twist. If you prefer a cherry, don’t resist the impulse.
Gear. Stirred drink.
So. Two ounces gin (you can always do an ounce and a half, but I want the kick).
An ounce of vermouth (or an ounce and a half, if that’s how much gin you used). Since the Ransom is rather robust, but not intensely so, I went with the middle vermouth.
Two dashes of bitters—“Bogart’s,” in this case. Dense and spicy.
Thwack a few ice cubes with your spoon and deposit their fragmentary remains in your mixing glass.
And stir.
Strain, as one must, into a freezer-chilled glass.
Snap that peel over the glass (skin-Side down, naturally). There’s no picture for this because they were all unusually ugly.
And there stands the glass. If you’ve never had a proper wet Martini, it’s a lovely drink, and you can see how easy it would be to confuse it with the Manhattan, as people often did.
Today’s Toast is brought to you by Wobber’s Chronicle Bar, San Francisco. “If it ain’t Wobbers, you ain’t wobblin’.”
