Tomorrow I’ll be meeting a friend who I have not seen for seven years. He works in St. James’s so this is a perfect opportunity to go to Dukes hotel where they mix the best martinis in the world*.
Part of the amusement in having a martini at Dukes is the little ceremony they go through in order to mix one’s drink. They bring a little table with the ingredients on it next to where you sit. Using a vinegar dropper they put a couple of drops of Vermouth into a frozen martini glass. They then fill it to the brim with frozen Tanqueray. Next a slice of lemon zest is squeezed over the glass and then ran around the rim. You can see the lemon oil in little iridescent pools on the surface of the martini.
You’ll note I said Tanqueray, other spirits are available, but Tanqueray is best. I find it such a happy phrase to go in there and say, “Two Tanqueray martinis, please.”
*New Yorker magazine said a few years back that Dukes was the best place to get a martini in the world. I have to say I have never had a better one, even on our trip to New York.
