Martini & Rossi Bianco Enlists 110 Bartenders to Create Specialty Cocktails for Milestone 110th Anniversary

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To celebrate its 110th anniversary today, Martini & Rossi Bianco Vermouth — an award-winning offering which debuted in 1910 — is bringing together 110 top bartenders around the globe to create specialty cocktails with the Italian spirit staple.

The bartenders tapped for this project — including Massimo Stronati of San Francisco’s Ettan and Dario Doimo of Vegas hotspot Hanks to name a few — each created their own spin on traditional vermouth cocktail recipes. Known as bianchissimo (the whitest), Martini Bianco is a variety of sweetened vermouth — fortified and aromatized wine — that was first introduced on October 26th, 1910.

Although the exact recipe is a closely guarded secret by the 8th generation of Martini & Rossi artisans, Martini Bianco is made from filtered white wine that is sweetened and contain different botanicals that include spices, herbs, citrus zest, barks, and roots. Dubbed the ‘Queen of Vermouth’, the offering has been a favorite of industry insiders and consumers alike for decades.

Recipes and details for the North American bartenders and recipes are below:

St. Agatha

Created by Will Benedetto of The Fox Bar and Cocktail Club, Nashville, TN

Ingredients:

45 ml MARTINI Bianco

45 ml MARTINI Prosecco

3 ml apple cider vinegar

2 drops of saline

Orange zest

Chrysanthemum garnish

Directions:

· Stir MARTINI Bianco, apple cider vinegar, and saline on ice and strain into chilled glass

· Top with MARTINI Prosecco

· Garnish with a chrysanthemum and express the oils of an orange peel over top of the cocktail (then discard).

Glassware: Nick and Nora

Description: The St. Agatha Cocktail, like MARTINI Bianco, finds depth through simplicity. Quality Prosecco offers effervesce and texture, apple cider vinegar provides rich acidity and saline excites the palate and pays tribute to St. Agatha’s Sicilian home. MARTINI Bianco serves as the base delivering nuanced bouquets of herbs and exotic woods. To tease out the fragrant fruit flavors of MARTINI Bianco, orange is zested over the glass. Finally, a Chrysanthemum flower is floated on the cocktail to signify the evolving beauty of the seasons of nature.

‘Mericano Pop

Created by Massimo Stronati of Ettan Bar, Menlo Park, San Francisco, CA

Ingredients:

40 ml MARTINI Bianco infused with lemon peel*
30 ml MARTINI Riserva Speciale Bitter
5 ml popcorn syrup*
10 ml habanero distilled spirit
2 drops celery bitters
20 ml cucumber kolsh beer

Popcorn cone garnish

Directions: Build all ingredients except the beer in a tall glass with ice, top with the beer.

MARTINI Bianco infused with lemon peel: Add the peel (without pith) of five lemons to a bottle of MARTINI Bianco and seal in a vacuum bag for one day
Popcorn syrup: Simple syrup (2:1 sugar -water) with salted popcorn added

Glassware: Collins glass

Description: The Americano is one of the iconic aperitivo cocktails and this version is full of flavors and complexity, starting with the MARTINI Bianco and combining new and old mixology trends to bring a new vibe. Being an Italian living in California and working in a fusion Indian California Restaurant, my aim is to fuse together different styles from around the world whilst never forgetting the basics and my roots, which means vermouth will always have a strong place on my cocktail lists!

Playing Hooky

Created by Francis Stansky of Pacific Cocktail Haven, San Francisco, CA

Ingredients:

45 ml MARTINI Bianco
30ml pisco
15ml pear liqueur
1 dash citrus bitters
2 dash acid phosphate

Lemon twist for garnish

Directions:

· In a mixing glass express the oils from one lemon peel and then add all ingredients

· Add ice, stir and strain into chilled Martini glass

Glassware: Martini Cocktail Glass

Description: This cocktail is a riff on the Martinez; I wanted to create a clear version like a White Negroni. Pear Cognac and Peruvian Pisco led me to the Peruvian phrase “Tirades la pera.” It translates as truancy, which we call “playing hooky” or ditching work to go and have some fun. In true Martinez fashion, the cocktail couldn’t exist without a fine vermouth. I chose the MARTINI Bianco because of its richness and vanilla notes; it beautifully marries the floral notes from the Pisco with the pear notes of the liqueur. A great addition to the Aperitivo hour!

110 Shades of Aspen

Created by Andrei Kabaila of Casa Tua Aspen, Basalt, CO

Ingredients:

40 ml MARTINI Bianco
30 ml gin
30 ml fresh lime juice
10 ml demerara sugar syrup
1 handful of basil
1 cucumber slice

Dried Aspen leaf for garnish

Directions: Muddle the cucumber and basil in a shaker, add remaining ingredients and dry shake, then add ice and shake again. Double strain.

Glassware: Coupette glass

Description: As we are moving towards off season in Aspen, Colorado, I decided to show the colors of the beautiful Rocky Mountains and reflect them in a cocktail. I’m using the basil and cucumber to make it green and express the colors of the mountains and eg g white to show that it’s already snowing up high. The dried aspen leaf shows the yellow, bright and green colors of the surroundings around the town.

Fior di MARTINI

Created by Dario Doimo of Hank’s Fine Steaks & Martini’s, Las Vegas, NV

Ingredients:

45 ml MARTINI Bianco
15 ml Luxardo bitter bianco
15ml Italicus Rosolio di Bergamotto
2 dash grapefruit bitters

Lemon peel for garnish

Directions:

Stir and strain, zest with lemon peel then drop into the drink

Glassware: Nick & Nora

Description: A beautiful clear aperitivo style drink, refreshing and light on the palate, perfect to sip in company.

Fusion Old Fashioned

Created by Daniele Rocchetti of Rintintin, New York, NY

Ingredients:

50ml Wild Turkey Honey American Whiskey

30ml Martini Bianco

1 Barspoon dry marashino cherry

30 ml soda water

Lemon twist for garnish

1 grape for garnish

Directions:

Built. Add all the ingredients in a rock glass, add ice, stir them, garnish with a grape and a lemon twist

Glassware: Old Fashioned

Description: I liked the idea to create a cocktail fusing an Italian aperitif with an American whiskey, smoother with a honey touch, taking off the usual brown sugar and switch the cherry with a grape.

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The New York Exclusive by Editor Tony Bowles

Tony Bowles is one of the youngest sought journalists in the media world. He focuses on lifestyle, travel, entertainment, food, and more! Based in New York City