Marin Coastal Gin Quail Egg Martini
WRITER/RECIPE/PHOTOGRAPHY Adrian Spinelli
For the first time in a few years my dad came to visit me from Brazil last summer, shortly before my son was born in September. We took a father/son road trip from SF up the coast all the way to Mendocino, and on our first stop we stayed the night at Nick’s Cove on Tomales Bay in Marshall. Our cottage was stilted up on the Bay shore, with a view of the sunset from the maritime-chic living room window that felt positively surreal. As nightfall approached, we walked out the door and took a seat at the bartop of the revamped on-site restaurant for a couple of drinks and oysters right out of the Bay before dinner. Even if I’m not too far from home, when I’m traveling I love discovering local spirits and the Marin Coastal Gin label jumped out at me from the shelf. I ordered a martini and the subtle hint of nori from the gin felt like the essence of the coastline and cold, fertile waters we had driven past to get here. (I’d come to learn the seaweed used in the 2-year-old Sausalito Liquor Co.’s flagship gin was foraged not too far away, on the northern stretch of Bodega Bay that we’d drive past the next morning.) Alongside regional angelica herb, juniper, and citrus, my senses were enlivened by this gorgeous expression of the NorCal oyster country terroir.
A few months later, on one of my first nights out since my son’s birth, I spotted Marin Coastal Gin again in SF, and of course, I had to order it. I sipped my cocktail and was immediately transported back to that memory with my dad. The salty, crisp air of our drive along Highway 1, the brininess of those oysters at Nick’s, and most of all the conversations with my dad about my impending fatherhood. This nostalgia and vivid sensory recollection are exactly what a good spirit should evoke, and Marin Coastal Gin will hold a space in my liquor cabinet for exactly that reason.
Marin Coastal Gin Quail Egg Martini
I recently discovered the magic behind Ray's Cocktail Eggs, a locally-owned company that makes pickled cocktail eggs in a solution of vinegar, red onion, vermouth, sugar, garlic, salt, and a secret spice mix. The pickling is subtle, and the Spanish olive-sized quail eggs are just flat out fun. Once I added one as a garnish to a classic Marin Coastal Gin Martini, it felt even more evocative of Northern California, where our state birds roost on Pacific coastal scrub amid the cold ocean waters.
Serves 1
Ingredients:
2.5 oz Marin Coastal Gin
.5 oz (or less) dry vermouth
Dash of orange bitters (to taste)
Garnish with one of Ray’s Cocktail Eggs
Instructions:
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass, stir steadily for 45 seconds to make extra cold. Serve up, garnish with pickled quail egg.
Note: Find Ray's Cocktail Eggs in the refrigerated section of local bottle shops like Noe Valley Wine & Spirits (and grab a print copy of Edible SF on your way out!)