An extra, extra dirty martini made with loads of olive brine, vodka or gin and dry vermouth for a super fun cocktail hour!

Two olive skewers in an extra dirty martini

**Extra Dirty or Extra, Extra Dirty Martini?**

Do you like a sweet or savory cocktail? How about a dirty one? If you loved my dirty martini, you might be looking for a little upgrade… in the form of an Extra Dirty Martini. We had so much fun making the Hot and Dirty Martini that I thought we could spice things up further with today’s cocktail. Let’s cocktail!

A short martini glass filled with extra dirty martini with a bamboo skewer

What is An Extra Dirty Martini? What Does Extra Dirty Martini Mean?

An extra dirty martini is a martini that has an unusually high amount of olive brine in it. A classic martini has a clear, colorless appearance—which leads to the visual cue that it’s “clean.” A classic martini is made with vodka, gin, and maybe a splash of bitters. These colorless ingredients create a colorless martini.

What Makes a Martini Extra Dirty?

On the other side of things, a dirty martini has a cloudy, slightly green-tinted appearance—which leads to the visual cue that it’s “dirty,” in a fun way! The cloudy, green-tint is thanks to olive brine—the liquid that jarred olives sit in to marinate. The more olive brine that’s added to a martini, the “dirtier” it gets. Thus, an extra dirty martini is a dirty martini with lots and lots of olive brine in it.

A hand pouring liquid from a stainless steel cocktail shaker into a martini glass

But Exactly What’s in An Extra Dirty Martini?

So, what’s exactly in an extra dirty martini? Just a few simple ingredients:

Vodka or gin
Dry vermouth
Olive brine
And… an olive skewer for a garnish

Hand finishing the last of the pour into the glass

How to Make an Extra Dirty Martini

It’s super simple to learn how to make an extra dirty martini. All it takes are a few steps, and a fun twist of olive brine and a garnish. Ready? Let’s make an extra, extra dirty martini!

Chill

Place a martini glass or two into the freezer to pre-chill.

Fill

First, fill a cocktail shaker with ice.

Pour

Using a measuring jigger, measure out vodka or gin, dry vermouth, and olive brine. Pour these martini ingredients over the ice. Using my recipe as an extra dirty martini recipe guideline, add the amount of olive brine you’d like. You can always start with less, and add more to taste as suits your preference.

Shake or Stir

If you prefer the martini shaken, cover and shake until the martini is chilled throughout. A good way to tell if it’s ready? Check the condensation on the outside of the cocktail shaker. It should coat most of the shaker and be very cold to the touch. If you prefer the martini stirred, grab a stirring spoon from your cocktail set and stir the vodka/gin, dry vermouth, and olive brine together until well mixed and chilled.

Strain

Grab the chilled martini glass(es) from the freezer. Strain your extra dirty martini mixture into the chilled glass(es).

Garnish

Spear two to three olives onto a bamboo cocktail skewer. Drop the skewer into your glass(es). For this extra dirty martini, I like to add two skewers because it’s fun and shows that this dirty martini is extra, extra dirty!

hand dropping an olive skewer into a short cocktail glass

An Extra, Extra Dirty Martini Recipe with Vodka

Looking for an extra dirty vodka martini recipe? Look no further than today’s recipe. Typically, a dirty martini is made with vodka or gin—it’s your choice. If you’re looking to make an extra dirty martini with vodka, simply select your favorite vodka and follow the recipe as listed below.

I love using a freshly-opened jar of olives to get my olive brine. Since the olives have already been soaking in the brine for quite a while, you get a deep, rich tasting olive brine. The richer the olive brine, the dirtier your cocktail will taste.

If you’re interested in more martinis that pack a flavor punch, be sure to check out my Lemon Drop Martini.

hand holding olive skewer that's nearly submerged in the cocktail

Is there a difference between Olive Juice and Olive Brine?

Olive juice is the juice that’s squeezed out of olives—think of orange juice or grapefruit juice—you take the fruit, press it, and the liquid that comes out is juice. Olive brine is the liquid that jarred olives sit, soak, and marinate in. Olive brine is made up of salt, vinegar, and water. The longer the olives sit in the brine, the richer the flavor of the brine. [1]

When making cocktails, we interchangeably refer to olive juice and olive brine. When a cocktail recipe calls for olive juice, it’s fairly safe to assume that it’s calling for olive brine. [2]

Hand holding a second olive skewer to complete the extra dirty martini against a black backdrop

Tools You Need For the Perfect

Sip Happens

How dirty do you like it? Some might say a martini glass full of olive brine, with just a splash of vodka and dry vermouth will do. 😉 It’s been so much fun shaking (or stirring) things up with you today! Be sure to let me know what you think by commenting below, or by making this recipe, taking a pic, and posting it on Instagram using the tags @beamingbaker and #beamingbaker. I can’t what to see! ‘Til our next cocktail adventure…

Sending you all my love and maybe even a dove, xo Demeter ❤️

🫒 📸 🍸

📸 Did you make this extra dirty martini recipe? Take a pic and share it on Instagram with the hashtag #beamingbaker & tag @beamingbaker. I’d love to see it! 📸

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