"Hello friends! Tonight, I am excited to announce that I believe I have resurrected a long-forgotten cocktail from the dead that was popular at a now-defunct Phoenix eatery. This drink also called for Chambraise, which I had the hardest time finding ANY information on. An internet search yielded a blurry picture of a bottle, and some information that it was a French aperitif that was flavored with wild strawberries.
I consulted Reddit, as well as my reference material, namely the 1971 edition of Playboy's Bartender and Host Manual, and Oxford's Companion to Beer, Wine, and Spirits, which also gave limited results. I did learn that there was a style of vermouth called "Chamberey," which was a very light vermouth flavored with strawberries. Further research led me to learn that Dolin, based in Chambéry, France, is one of the last producers of this style of vermouth. Since Chambraise was a light strawberry-flavored French aperitif, I felt that a Dolin Blanc would be a good place to start to approximate the flavor of Chambraise.
Initially, I was going to substitute Empress Gin for the Bombay Sapphire that was originally called for and use some strawberry syrup to flavor the Blanc Vermouth. Finding Blanc Vermouth proved a bit difficult as well, and I went to two liquor stores before finding a bottle of Martini & Rossi Bianco. A stop at a third store today proved much more fruitful, where I found a bottle of Dolin Blanc, as well as a bottle of Beefeater Pink Strawberry Gin. With these two bottles in hand, I set out to make my version of a Sapphire Martini.
My version of a Sapphire Martini is a 6:1 Gin martini that is slightly sweet and has a strong strawberry flavor. This is as close as I could come to approximating the flavor of Chambraise as used in a martini, and it turned out to be a rather tasty tipple for a Saturday night! Cheers!",
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"Sapphire Martini",
Hello friends! Tonight, I am excited to announce that I believe I have resurrected a long-forgotten cocktail from the dead that was popular at a now-defunct Phoenix eatery. This drink also called for Chambraise, which I had the hardest time finding ANY information on. An internet search yielded a blurry picture of a bottle, and some information that it was a French aperitif that was flavored with wild strawberries.
I consulted Reddit, as well as my reference material, namely the 1971 edition of Playboy's Bartender and Host Manual, and Oxford's Companion to Beer, Wine, and Spirits, which also gave limited results. I did learn that there was a style of vermouth called "Chamberey," which was a very light vermouth flavored with strawberries. Further research led me to learn that Dolin, based in Chambéry, France, is one of the last producers of this style of vermouth. Since Chambraise was a light strawberry-flavored French aperitif, I felt that a Dolin Blanc would be a good place to start to approximate the flavor of Chambraise.
Initially, I was going to substitute Empress Gin for the Bombay Sapphire that was originally called for and use some strawberry syrup to flavor the Blanc Vermouth. Finding Blanc Vermouth proved a bit difficult as well, and I went to two liquor stores before finding a bottle of Martini & Rossi Bianco. A stop at a third store today proved much more fruitful, where I found a bottle of Dolin Blanc, as well as a bottle of Beefeater Pink Strawberry Gin. With these two bottles in hand, I set out to make my version of a Sapphire Martini.
My version of a Sapphire Martini is a 6:1 Gin martini that is slightly sweet and has a strong strawberry flavor. This is as close as I could come to approximating the flavor of Chambraise as used in a martini, and it turned out to be a rather tasty tipple for a Saturday night! Cheers!
Ingredients:
- Dolin Blanc Vermouth
- Beefeater Pink Strawberry Gin
Instructions:
1. Fill mixing glass with ice.
2. Add Vermouth and Gin.
3. Stir.
4. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.
5. Garnish with a strawberry.
Spirit Forward,Martini,Fruity,1990s