Gibson martini

Ingredients

For the pickled onions

• 250g pearl onions, the smallest ones
• 200ml white wine vinegar
• 9 juniper berries
• ½ tsp coriander seeds
• 1 fresh bay leaf
• ¼ tsp fresh thyme leaves
• ¼ tsp whole black peppercorns
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 2 tsp fine salt
• 2 broad strips of orange zest
• 75ml dry vermouth

For the gibson martini

• 75ml gin
• 2 tsp dry vermouth
• ¾ tsp cocktail onion brine
• Cocktail onions

Equipment

• 1 x 500ml capacity storage jar, sterilised

Method

Peel the onions by immersing them in a bowl of boiling water for 1 min. Drain them, trim off their tops and bottoms, and the skins should slide off easily. Set the peeled onions aside.

Put all the other pickling ingredients except the vermouth into a pan. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved, then add the onions into the pan for 1 min. Take off the heat and allow to cool. Add the vermouth and transfer it all to a clean jar. Seal and store in the fridge. They will be ready to use in 1 week and will keep for months.

To make a gibson martini, fill a cocktail tin (or tall glass or jug) with lots of ice. Pour over the gin, vermouth and the brine from the jar of cocktail onions. Stir over the ice for 1 min and then strain into a chilled glass. Garnish with a cocktail onion dropped into the glass, or three on a cocktail stick.

Image: Orlando Gili