The (Updated) Story of M

At Taxi, a newly launched restobar in downtown Mumbai, an entire section of the bar is dedicated to this cocktail. Bar manager Wilson Rego has not only created seven signature margaritas, he’s also updated the rim. For some concoctions, he dusts the glasses with chilly flakes mixed with coarse salt.

TAXI’S TROPICAL BLISS
Ingredients
Tequila, 45 ml
Cointreau, 15 ml

Lime juice
Guava juice
Chilli and salt, for the rim

Method
Mix all the ingredients and shake with cubes of ice. Strain before pouring into chilled glasses.

MARTINI
Classic call
Best known as James Bond’s preferred poison, diehard fans like it dry and shaken, not stirred.

Ingredients
Gin, 60 ml; Vermouth, 15 ml;
olives, 2-3

Method
Stir ingredients over ice and serve on the rocks or strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a spear of olives. To make your martini dry, reduce the amount of vermouth and serve as cold as possible.

New arrival
The first alteration in martinis came with Sex and the City. Cosmopolitans were the new-look martinis. The same glasses were filled with vodka instead of gin. A hint of cranberry juice was the first touch of colour the clear cocktails got.

Today, martinis take the turquoise of the Blue Curacao, magenta of strawberry crush or dark brown of Tia Maria. When Grand Hyatt in suburban Mumbai opened its American restaurant, M, martinis took over the bar. The Harbour Bar at the Taj Mahal Palace & Towers also introduced an all new martini menu when they revamped and reopened in 2004. A year down, there’s hardly a celebration without a martini counter. “Martinis are the most popular party drinks,” asserts Manish Puri, assistant F&B director.

At M and bars across the city, martinis are becoming herby and spicy. Creme de Mente, pepper-flavoured vodka, Malibu, kokam, green apple—even champagne finds its way into martinis. And olives are no longer the usual garnish. Don’t be surprised to find lemon rind, table grapes, jalapenos or chunks of pineapple floating in your martini. “As long as the drink is served in a martini glass, people love it. Who doesn’t want to be in vogue?” says Puri.

M’S BOLLYWOOD BABY
Ingredients
Swiss white chocolate (melted); premium vanilla-flavoured vodka, 60 ml

Method
Mix in a blender till viscous and silky. Pour into a cocktail shaker and shake 10-12 times. Serve in a chilled glass.

MOJITO
Classic call This fresh cocktail has come a long way from the nightspots of Havana, and now has Bacardi popularising it. Earlier this rum and mint concoction was often known as drake. The addition of Bacardi gave it its present name.

Ingredients
Rum, 45 ml; soda, to top glass; lime, 1/2; sugar syrup, 2 tbsp; spearmint leaves, 10-12

Method
Muddle the mint, sugar and lime. Top the glass with the ice. Add rum and soda and stir. Garnish with a lime wedge and a mint leaf.

New arrival
This classic cocktail was the first to be omitted from the modern bar menu. Replacing it was its more popular vodka-based counterpart, Caipiroska. But that didn’t stop bartenders from experimenting. Lobo loves his mojito topped with coconut water. Zenzi’s restaurant manager Joel recommends a spoonful of cranberry juice in a regular mojito. ‘‘Not only does it make the drink look attractive, it’s unputdownable after a sip,’’ says Joel. Other often-tried options are with darker rums and orange juice, with grapes, pineapple or other citrus fruits.

ERIC LOBO’S GOLDEN MARMALADE
Ingredients
Brown sugar, 1 tbsp
Lemon wedges, 2
Orange, 1 (cut to pieces)
Bacardi, 60 ml
Mint leaves, 10-12
Apple juice, to top

Method
Muddle the lemon, sugar, mint and oranges. Add the bacardi, four cubes of ice and top with apple juice.