Cocktail Chemistry

The Art and Science of Drinks from Iconic TV Shows and Movies

Nick Fisher

• Publisher: S&S/Simon Element
• Year: 2022
• Print ISBN: 9781982167424
• eBook ISBN: 9781982167455
• Topic: Art
• Subtopic: Culinary Arts

" Cocktail Chemistry offers the essential knowledge, techniques, and flair for creating perfectly mixed drinks at home." — Bartender Magazine Enjoy clever, pop culture-inspired drinks with this collection of more than 80 recipes from the beloved Cocktail Chemistry YouTube channel. Have you ever seen a delicious-looking drink on your favorite movie or TV show and wondered how to make it? Well, now you can, with this collection of recipes from the creator of the popular Cocktail Chemistry YouTube channel Nick Fisher.Featuring recipes to recreate the classic White Russian from The Big Lebowski, the iconic martini from the James Bond movies, to drinks featured in Mad Men, The Simpsons, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Game of Thrones, The Office, Harry Potter, and more, Cocktail Chemistry will have you impressing your friends with your bartending skills in no time. In addition to recipes, Cocktail Chemistry includes everything you need to know to become a mixology expert, from how to make perfectly clear ice, delicious foams, and infusions, or how to flame a citrus peel. A must-have for all aspiring home mixologists and pop-culture buffs, Cocktail Chemistry will ensure you never have a boring drink again.

INSPIRED BY JAMES BOND IN CASINO ROYALE

THE VESPER MARTINI

and other martini recipes

James Bond ordered this drink in the novel Casino Royale (adapted for the big screen in 2006) in what I would consider to be ultimately doing a disservice to the bartender and to the other card players he suckered into copying his order. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s set the scene:

Bond is in a high-stakes poker game at the Casino Royale in Montenegro against the villain-of-the-day Le Chiffre and others, when the bartender comes to the table to offer Bond a drink. Bond instinctively orders a dry martini, but suddenly changes his order to a very specific, nonexistent cocktail. “Three measures of Gordon’s gin, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it over ice, and add a thin slice of lemon peel.”

All while never breaking eye contact with Le Chiffre. Total power move. Other players at the table are intrigued and jump on board to order the same. The drink is later named after the Bond girl Vesper Lynd. Unfortunately, for all those involved, the Vesper martini is a pretty mediocre cocktail.

Let’s start with one important detail: Kina Lillet has not existed since 1986. Lillet Blanc is often used instead, but it’s an entirely different aperitif that lacks the bitterness from the quinine in the original.

There are a few products on the market today that can approximate the original Kina Lillet, namely, Cocchi Americano or the wonderful Kina L’Aéro d’Or. You can use either of these in place of the Kina Lillet.

Here are the specs I would use to make a normal-size cocktail, with the ratios that Bond specified:

RECREATED

MAKES 1 DRINK

• 1½ ounces (45 ml) Gordon’s gin
• ½ ounce (15 ml) vodka
• ¼ ounce (7 ml) Kina Lillet (use Cocchi Americano or Kina L’Aéro d’Or as substitutes)
• 1 lemon twist, for garnish

Add the gin, vodka, and Kina to a shaker tin with ice. Shake and double strain (pour through a Hawthorne strainer over a fine-mesh strainer) into a chilled martini glass. Squeeze the lemon twist to express the essential oils over the drink, drop in the twist, and serve.

INSPIRED BY IRON MAN

THE DRY, DIRTY VODKA MARTINI

Let’s compare Bond’s Vesper martini to another big-screen martini order. In the first Iron Man movie (2008), the protagonist, Tony Stark, and his assistant, Pepper Potts, share a sexually charged slow dance at a charity ball, as well as a near-kiss experience after they step outside to get some air. So how do you ease the tension after that? How about a bucket of booze disguised as a cocktail? Tony is happy to oblige her request for a very dry vodka martini with olives. Lots of olives.

As we’re learning in the following pages, “dry” means not sweet, implying a higher ratio of spirit (in this case, vodka) to vermouth. “Extra dry” takes that even further, suggesting just a hint of vermouth. So yeah, a glass of vodka. Throw in some olive brine for some flavor (and to make it “dirty”).

RECREATED

MAKES 1 DRINK

• 2 ounces (60 ml) vodka
• ¼ ounce (7 ml) dry vermouth
• Green olive brine, to taste (I add about 3 barspoons)
• 5 green olives, skewered on a cocktail pick, for garnish

Add the vodka, vermouth, and olive brine to a mixing glass with ice and stir for about 45 seconds. Double strain (pour through a Hawthorne strainer over a fine-mesh strainer) into a chilled Nick & Nora glass and garnish with the olives.

A QUICK PRIMER ON THE MARTINI

ORDERING A MARTINI IS A LOT LIKE ORDERING A COFFEE. YOUR TALL, HALF-CAF, NONFAT LATTE WITH A CARAMEL DRIZZLE IS COMPARABLE TO YOUR VODKA MARTINI, EXTRA DRY, A BIT DIRTY WITH FIVE OLIVES, AND A LEMON TWIST. BEFORE I DIVE INTO THE RECIPES FOR THIS ICONIC COCKTAIL AND ITS SPINOFFS, LET’S FIRST DISCUSS THE BASIC COMPONENTS AND LANGUAGE OF THE MARTINI ORDER.

THE LANGUAGE OF THE MARTINI

BASE SPIRIT

Vodka or gin are the standard choices. Gin will often have more character and variation depending on which gin you choose (Hendrick’s, for example, will be quite distinct from, say, Tanqueray, which is a London dry gin). Vodka will showcase the other ingredients in the drink more prominently since it’s a neutral spirit.

MODIFIER

Often a dry vermouth, which is an aromatized and fortified wine. This gives the drink some body and sweetness, and makes it a proper cocktail instead of just a bucket of alcohol.

DRY

“Dry” literally means “not sweet.” So, here’s the confusing part—if you order a “dry martini,” you are actually requesting less dry vermouth (since dry vermouth is still a bit sweet). By specifying how dry you want your martini, you’re guiding the bartender about your preferred ratio of spirit-to-vermouth. You’ll see some examples later in this section.

DIRTY

“Dirty” refers to the addition of green olive brine. If you order your martini dirty or extra dirty, you’re asking for a few barspoons of olive brine to be mixed into the cocktail, which gives it a savory flavor.

GLASSWARE

Martinis are almost exclusively served “up” (in a stemmed glass without ice). I find the traditional V-shaped martini glass to be a terrible vessel—it’s too big and top heavy, forcing you to hold the V part to stabilize the glass and thus warming the drink with your hand. I’d recommend a coupe or Nick & Nora glass instead. Oh, and always chill your glass in the freezer ahead of time, or with ice water while you prepare the drink.

GARNISH

Don’t underestimate the impact of the garnish on the flavor. Expressing the essential oils from a lemon twist will brighten up the drink and even evolve it over time. Other common garnishes includ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Introduction
• Bar Tools
• Glassware
• Sweet, Sour, Bitter, and Salty
• 1. Martinis Inspired by James Bond and ‘Iron Man’ and Other Martini Recipes
• 2. Bart’s Manhattan Inspired by ‘The Simpsons’ and Other Manhattan Recipes
• 3. The Dude’s White Russian Inspired by ‘The Big Lebowski’ and Other Coffee Liqueur Cocktails
• 4. Don Draper’s Old Fashioned Inspired by ‘Mad Men’ and Other Old Fashioned Recipes
• 5. Green Russian Inspired by ‘Archer’ and Other Clarified Milk Punches
• 6. Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster Inspired by ‘The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’ and Other Rapid Infusions
• 7. One of Everything Inspired by ‘The Office’ and Other Loaded Cocktails
• 8. Thanks-tini Inspired by ‘How I Met Your MOther’ and Other Fall Cocktails
• 9. Cuba Libre Inspired by ‘Cocktail’ and Other Highball Cocktails
• 10. Fight Milk Inspired by ‘It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’ and Other Flips
• 11. Black Yukon Sucker Punch Inspired by ‘Twin Peaks’ and Other Coffee Cocktails
• 12. Easy on the Tini Appletini Inspired by ‘Scrubs’ and Other “Dark Ages” Cocktails
• 13. Forget-Me-Shot Inspired by ‘The Simpsons’ and Other Shots
• 14. Butterbeer Inspired by ‘Harry Potter’ and Other Fat Washing and Foam Techniques
• 15. Old Spanish Inspired by ‘30 Rock’ and Other Wine Cocktails
• 16. Skittlebrau Inspired by ‘The Simpsons’ and Other Beer Cocktails
• 17. A Song of Ice and Fire Inspired by ‘Game of Thrones’ and Other Ice Ball Cocktails
• 18. Peppermint Patty Inspired by ‘Archer’ and Other Hot Chocolate Cocktails
• 19. Infinity Cocktail Inspired by the ‘Avengers’ Series and Other Layered Cocktails
• 20. Flaming Homer Inspired by ‘The Simpsons’ and Other Flaming Cocktails
• 21. Baby Yoda Cocktail Inspired by ‘The Mandalorian’ and Other Last Word Variations
• 22. Wake-up Juice Inspired by ‘Back to the Future Part III’ and Other Breakfast Cocktails
• Acknowledgments
• About the Author
• Index
• Copyright