50/50 Martini

The classic 50/50 martini recipe is made with equal parts spirit and fortified wine. This version, from San José’s Paper Plane, swaps half of the traditional vermouth with fragrant and dry and nutty Amontillado sherry.

Serves
makes 1 Cocktail
Time
5 minutes

ERIK DELANOY

By Mary Palac

Published on April 24, 2020

Made in Osaka with traditional Japanese botanical ingredients, including sakura flower, yuzu, green tea, and sansho pepper, Roku gin yields a particularly light and delicate cocktail.

The classic 50/50 martini recipe should, by definition, be mixed with equal parts spirit and fortified wine. San José bartender Mary Palac’s 50/50 is no exception, though she splits the traditional vermouth in half, supplementing the remainder with a dry and nutty Amontillado sherry. Additionally, where the classic version calls for a dry, French-style vermouth, Palac subs in a sweeter, more floral and complex blanc or bianco style. The star of the show for this iteration of the 50/50 is Roku Gin, featuring 6 botanicals native to Japan (in addition to several more traditional gin flavorings). If you can’t get your hands on a bottle, a London dry-style gin will work nicely.

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Equipment

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Ingredients

1½ oz. Japanese or London dry gin
¾ oz. Amontillado sherry
¾ oz. blanc or bianco vermouth
2 dashes orange bitters
Lemon twist, for garnish

Instructions

Step 1

In a mixing glass filled with ice, add the gin, sherry, vermouth, and bitters. Stir until well-chilled, then strain into a martini glass or coupe and garnish with a lemon twist. Serve immediately.

In a mixing glass filled with ice, add the gin, sherry, vermouth, and bitters. Stir until well-chilled, then strain into a martini glass or coupe and garnish with a lemon twist. Serve immediately.