Category Archives: sweet vermouth

The first—and only—time I overdrew from my checking account was to purchase a pair of brown leather open-toe conical heel pumps. (Miss Mojito must stress that she is normally much more responsible when it comes to her shoe purchases!) I found them after sorting through loads of shoes at Nordstrom Rack, and immediately found myself drooling over the chic peep toe and the bright red lining, but most of all, the eye-catching heel. This was my first encounter with the cone-shaped heel, which starts wide and round at the base of the shoe and narrows to a smaller point. The shape is retro, feminine and utterly irresistible to Miss Mojito.

I recently reintroduced myself to the conical heel at the Asheville, N.C. shoe-mecca, Tops for Shoes, on a weekend getaway. The shop is known for a well edited selection, but even more, they’re known for their regular sales.

It was in the clearance section of Tops for Shoes that I came across this pair of gray leather Mary Jane-style pumps with a conical heel by Seychelles. They’re super comfy, and the neutral color pops with my pair of purple gem-tone tights.

For this shoe’s sophisticated and slightly retro silhouette, I think a sophisticated—and slightly retro—drink is in order. For sophistication, you can’t do much better than a martini—served, of course, in a traditional, cone-shaped martini glass.

You might have seen Jason Wilson’s recent Washington Post article, “Stirrings of a Better Martini,” which taught me a thing or two about the classic concoction. According to Mr. Wilson, there is no such thing as a “vodka martini,” which is just fine by this gin-lover. Moreover, the martini’s reputation has apparently been destroyed by macho men who think of the sweet touch of vermouth as a bit too feminine for their tastes.

The Post dishes up four different martini recipes for experimentation. I must admit that the martini has never been my favorite drink, but I’m inclined to give the Martinez a try. Mr. Wilson describes it as the martini for those with a sweet tooth.

The Martinez

• Ice
• 1 ½ ounces Old Tom Gin*
• 1 ½ sweet vermouth
• 1 teaspoon maraschino liqueur**
• 2 dashes orange or aromatic bitters
• 1 twist of lemon or orange peel, for garnish

Fill a mixing glass halfway full with ice. Add the gin, vermouth, maraschino liqueur and bitters. Stir vigorously for at least 30 seconds, then strain into a cocktail (martini) glass. Garnish with the lemon or orange peel twist.

*Some googling around led me to discover that a commonly recommended substitute is 1 ½ ounces of regular gin with about ½ an ounce of simple syrup.

**The recommendation here is for maraschino liqueur, NOT to be confused with maraschino juice, which is apparently sweeter. Since Miss M doesn’t mind her drinks a bit on the sweet side—and because she’s not likely to have the liqueur available in her cabinet—she plans to give the juice a try as a substitute.

Posted by Miss Mojito.