If you love a good dirty martini like I do, it’s hard not to ask for an extra filthy martini and as many olives as they’re willing to give me at a cocktail bar. And if you think that’s bad, I had a friend who would bring a jar of his favorite olives to bars, and, surprisingly, bartenders rarely balked at using them when making his martinis. It’s the brine that puts the “filth” in a dirty martini and I’m here for it. The mixture of water, vinegar, salt, and lingering olive flavor adds a salty and umami-filled punch and depth to a simple cocktail made with gin (my preference) or vodka and dry vermouth.
When making dirty martinis at home, there’s no one to judge how “dirty” you prefer yours or how many olives you toss in. The problem with jarred olives is the limited amount of brine each bottle contains. But there’s a simple hack to make sure you always have enough olive brine on hand. If you have a grocery store with an olive bar, nothing’s stopping you from upping the brine-to-olive ratio in your container since it’s a self-serve situation.
A word of caution when getting brine from an olive bar
When you’re at the grocery store olive bar, be sure you’re ladling brine into your container. Some olives are marinated in a mixture of oil, herbs, and other spices. At best, they’re coated in olive oil, but more often than not they’re in canola oil. This is why you should always read ingredient lists religiously. You probably don’t want either of these oils floating around in your cocktail because they’ll mess up the mouthfeel and flavor.
Pro tip: If you’re lucky enough to find an olive bar with pepperoncini, the mildly hot Italian peppers, you might want to consider getting some of the brine and peppers for a spicy take on the classic dirty martini. Whether you go for the traditional olive brine, pepperoncini brine, or both, your grocery store olive bar is the place to get it. And the next time you’re at a cocktail bar, don’t be afraid to tell the bartender exactly how you like your martini, no matter how filthy you prefer it.
