The Guide to the Perfect Martini
A blog for thoughts, ideas, comments, about the Perfect Martini: How to make, how to enjoy, where to enjoy.
“They found water on Mars? Big deal. Call me when they find gin.”
Bette Midler
Just saw this on Twitter and thought it was too funny and very timely. Hope you like it too.
BTW, there is a ‘sister’ twitter site associated with this blog. Not exactly the same comments, but you might find it amusing. @Shkn_Nt_Strrd
Nestled in the back of the Ventura Harbor is the Rhumb Line restaurant. The ‘by line’ of the place is ‘The Sunset Restaurant’. It has great views of the Ventura Harbor, and yes, the Sunset.
The restaurant has been around in some form for many years, but Rhumb Line has only been there three. This incarnation seems to be the best.
The food is very good with a nice mix of seafood, of course, and traditional American fare. Ambiance is absolutely ‘clean’ nautical, which is perfectly appropriate for the location and great views of the harbor. The Service has been great; the team is very friendly and helpful. There is also a grand piano in the entry with enough free space for a dance floor if the occasion calls for that.
The Rhumb Line’s Martinis are pretty good. The glass was very nicely chilled, almost frozen. It was thoroughly shaken and perfectly dry. I only have two issues with them. First they don’t use the classic Martini Stem with which I’m so enamored. And second, their selection of gin is average with the usual mainstream selections but nothing ‘special’.
Having said that, I do like the Rhumb Line. Its ‘out of the way’ which I like, and has great views. If I’m in the area, I will certainly stop in. And will order a Martini too. The Rhumb Line gets one Martini Stem: 
For selection Rhumb Line gets a “B”. Their Gins include:
Hendricks, Bombay , Bombay Sapphire, Tanqueray, Tanqueray 10, Beefeater, Beefeater 24, and Nolet’s.
“It takes only one drink to get me drunk. The trouble is, I can’t remember if it’s the thirteenth or the fourteenth.”
George Burns
For more fun Martini quotes check out the appropriately titled “Martini Quotes” page, or click the link: Martini Quotes.
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Alcohol diet? Is that a real thing? Well, no, not really. But it offers a starting point to think about our diet, and Martini, choices.
If you’re like most of us you’re probably ‘counting’ calories in one form or another. Not necessarily keeping a daily diary of everything you eat, but most of us are aware that it takes 24 minutes of brisk walking to burn off the calories in one can of coke. And an hour and 10 minutes to burn off the calories in one slice of pizza and a can of coke.
Each of us has our own idea of weight, exercise, and food balance. And we all make choices. That’s true in our choices for adult beverages.
The standard 1.5 oz serving of 80-proof alcohol has 96 calories before you add any mixers. Bombay Sapphire is 97 proof and has 114 calories. So a dry martini would have approximately 100 calories, depending on Gin, number of olives (5 calories each, if that’s your choice), and whether its ‘wet’ or ‘dry’.
Comparing to other cocktails: Gin & Tonic 187, Mai Tai 306, Pina Colada 320, Margarita 327, Rum & Coke 361, Mudslide 820
And how many calories in desert? Chocolate Cake without frosting: about 352 , 1/2 cup Ice Cream 137 , 1/2 cup Chocolate Mousse 454 , and Creme Brulee 210.
So if you’re counting calories which would you pick? Cake or Martini? My choice is clear; I haven’t had dessert in a long long time.
The calorie numbers above are taken from various internet sources and are representative and for comparison purposes & humor.
ALWAYS Drink responsibly.
We do NOT endorse excessive alcohol consumption.
Know the law, know your limits: drink to the lesser of the two.
Just a little something to hopefully bring a smile to your face:
My wife said I needed to bond with my son.
So I had him make me a martini, shaken, not stirred
For more fun Martini jokes check out the appropriately titled “Martini Jokes” page, or click the link: Martini Jokes.
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“One martini is all right. Two are too many, and three are not enough.”
James Thurber
For more fun Martini quotes check out the appropriately titled “Martini Quotes” page, or click the link: Martini Quotes.
If you like these posts and want to be notified by email when they come in, please subscribe to the blog…. over on the left. 😉
I’m not much of a Vodka drinker, and certainly never in Martinis. None-the-less one cannot have helped but notice the recent trend in flavored Vodkas. I’ve observed this with great amusement and occasional bewilderment. I mean Bacon Vodka? Really? If I want bacon I’ll have bacon. No need to blemish bacon with vodka.
I bring this up because I recently read a blog commenting that perhaps this trend is happily coming to an end. Rather than repeat the whole article I’m just going to refer you to the source: Good Libations. Enjoy.
https://phodgins.wordpress.com/
The Cellar in Fullerton is a great cozy little romantic place that is, really, in the cellar of ‘The Villa Del Sol’ building. This is a 1923 Spanish Colonial with its own interesting history. The Cellar itself was created in 1969 and is designed to resemble an old world cave wine cellar. Reportedly it was designed by the same artist who did Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean. The results are a very romantic old world ‘cave’ feel with lots of dark wood and leather.
The lounge area is just to the right as you enter the restaurant. It is a very tight fit, very cozy, and keeps with the cellar cave look. There are only 7 bar stools, so it gets filled up pretty quickly, but there are several scattered tables and booths available.
The bar ‘pit’ is even cozier than the lounge. While I’ve seen three bartenders and a bar back working there, its really spaced for one. The head barkeep, Rich, is really excellent and knowledgeable. He advocates stirred martinis, but I’ll forgive him that minor flaw.
As my readers well know, my drink of choice for comparison would be Sapphire, dry, with a twist. But the until recently, the Cellar didn’t carry Sapphire! They do however have an excellent selection of different gins. So I forced myself to improvise and try a different gin, several times. Since then they have, happily, added Sapphire.
The Martinis here are excellent. They are professionally, even exuberantly, prepared and well chilled. Though, as noted, The Cellar stirs their Martinis and therefore aren’t quite as chilled as I would prefer. None-the-less, they are really quite good. The bar staff are very helpful, knowledgeable & informative, friendly, and do an overall great job.
In addition to enjoying many martinis at the Cellar I have also eaten there on several occasions. The food is excellent, though a bit pricey. The service has also always been excellent. And the decor is, as noted, romantic. Definitely a special occasion place.
The gin selection here is an “A”. Their selection does change periodically, but they maintain a nice selection of styles. The do focus on “small batch” and lesser known distilleries. Their recent selection includes; Bombay Sapphire, Ford’s, Hayman’s Old Tom, Plymouth Navy Strength 114pf, St. George Terrior, Sipsmith, Russel Henry, Ransom Old Tom, Sipsmith V.J.O.P 115 pf., Bols Genever, Bols Barrel-Aged Genever.
For the Martini, the environment, and the Barkeep, The Cellar gets two stems.
For information: www.cellardining.com
***** Rating Definitions ****
“If I had to live my life over, I’d live over a saloon.”
W.C. Fields
For more fun Martini quotes check out the appropriately titled “Martini Quotes” page, or click the link: Martini Quotes.
If you like these posts and want to be notified by email when they come in, please subscribe to the blog…. over on the left. 😉
If you haven’t checked out my Martini Quotes page recently you’ll be happy know that there are many new enlightening & entertaining quotes. Or you can wait until they appear over time in my “Random Martini Quote for the Day” postings.
There are also several good Martini Jokes for your amusement in the new Martini Jokes page.