Do you like them dirty?

I had my first-ever dirty martini last night. Actually, it might also have been my first-ever martini, as I’ve spent most of my life preferring the flavour of spirits to be masked in cocktails rather than highlighted.

I was pleasantly surprised by how it tasted. I’m not sure I’d choose it over a Tommy’s Margarita, but I wouldn’t turn my nose up.

I was invited to this soiree:

I turned the invitation down initially because it was during work hours, but then I took flex time to accompany the eldest to a medical appointment (which ended up clashing with a medical appointment for the youngest, who had to take themselves), so I figured I might as well treat myself to champers afterwards.

The youngest picked the eldest and I up after the medical appointment and dropped me in town. It’s very handy having another driver in the family!

Oh and it turns out the youngest’s tendon hasn’t detached from her thigh, she just has nerve damage and a quad tear.

That’s all.

Sigh.

She needs to take a month off sport, which has her frothing with fury.

Anyways she dropped me off and I made my way to The Charles Grand Brasserie & Bar, which as you would expect from something that has the word “grand” in the title is VERY fancy.

While the bar was empty when I arrived, it was PACKED when I left. Sydney CBD is jumping on a Wednesday night.

After sipping various Champagnes and white wines, my dirty martini was brought out. It reminded me a bit of getting deconstructed Vegemite toast in a cafe. The spirits were in the glass and a glass bottle with an eye dropper was beside it in a tub of crushed ice, plus there was an olive and a caperberry skewered on a metal spike and a disc of lemon rind on the side.

Inside the glass bottle was olive juice and the idea was that you added drops of it to suit your taste, then arranged the drink to your liking.

I really should have taken a photo of the set up, it was quite the work of art.

I was seated with the lovely sommelier Paolo and we had a chitter chat about how cool it is to be a sommelier for a living as we snacked on oysters and deconstructed prawn cockail and the most delicious club sandwich I have ever tasted.

Paolo had to pop off a few times to mingle and sort out sommelier stuff, which left me with three young people who were deeply disinterested in talking to a 55 year old. To be honest, I was fairly disinterested in talking to them too, we did not have much in common. It was such a relief each time Paolo returned to save me from feigning intense interest in my phone messages.

Anyways, I was home by about 6.30pm, which is perfect timing for a middle-aged woman. The young people were off to another function to eat more fancy food and drink more fancy wine. I have no idea how they stay so stick thin.

And tonight I’m out again, which is a bit daunting. I’ve scored free tickets to Tina – The Tina Turner Musical.

What a week! Hand me a Berocca ..: actually, don’t, they’re gross.

Song of the day: ACDC “Dirty deeds”