Name: Moonshine Martini
Total time: 3 min
Cuisine: Cocktail
Ingredients: 45 ml Gin; 15 ml Maraschino liqueur; 30 ml Dry vermouth; 2.5 ml Absinthe

Moonshine Martini
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Glass:

Serve in a Coupe glass

Ingredients:
1 ¹⁄₂ fl oz	Hayman's London Dry Gin
¹⁄₂ fl oz	Luxardo Maraschino liqueur
1 fl oz	Strucchi Dry Vermouth
¹⁄₁₂ fl oz	La Fée Parisienne absinthe

Read about cocktail measures and measuring

Prepare:

Select and pre-chill a COUPE GLASS.
Prepare garnish of Luxardo Maraschino Cherry.

How to make:

STIR all ingredients with ice.
FINE STRAIN into chilled glass.

Garnish:

Garnish with maraschino cherry.

Allergens:

Recipe contains the following allergens:

Dry vermouth - Sulphur Dioxide/Sulphites

Strength & taste guide:

No alcohol

Medium

Boozy

Sweet

Medium

Dry/sour

More cocktails with similar strength and taste profile

Cocktail of the day:

3rd June 2026 is Anniversary of the first American spacewalk

Review:

A wet Martini with balanced hints of maraschino and absinthe.

View readers' comments

History:

Adapted from a recipe in Harry Craddock's 1930 The Savoy Cocktail Book.

Moonshine Cocktail. (6 people)
3 Glasses Gin.
2 Glasses French Vermouth.
1 Glass Maraschino.
Before shaking add a drop of Absinthe Bitters.
Harry Craddock, 1930

Martini cocktail and its evolution

More cocktails by Harry Craddock

Nutrition:

One serving of Moonshine Martini contains 180 calories

Alcohol content:

1.7 standard drinks
25.91% alc./vol. (51.82° proof)
24 grams of pure alcohol

Difford’s Guide remains free-to-use thanks to the support of the brands in green above. Values stated for alcohol and calorie content, and number of drinks an ingredient makes should be considered approximate.

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Showing 10 of 15 comments for Moonshine Martini.
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Jonathan Arnold

6th June at 21:19

This was real good as written! My friend and I really enjoyed it.

Lugless Booth

29th August 2025 at 13:31

To counter the inherent ‘wetness’ and sweetness of this superb Martini variant, I up the gin quotient to 2 oz and don’t sweat it if the absinthe is a shade over 1/12. Then I knuckle down on the precision and keep the maraschino and dry vermouth as recommended. I keep the Cherry garnish but rarely consume it at the end. This toughens up the drink just enough to make it a delight to repeat on any occasion.

John Hinojos

4th June 2025 at 00:23

WOW, still love this cocktail. It does have a bit of sweetness. Being great lovers of absinthe, we added a spray of absinthe on the top to counter the sweet. Would consider reducing the Maraschino liqueur a bit. Love it.

John CARR

4th July 2024 at 13:41

I saw the 15ml of Luxardo and hesitated (even as a Luxardo fan)… but read the comments and went ahead as per spec and was pleasantly surprised. A lot of sweetness but the herbal and mineral qualities of the gin and vermouth still very forefront. Certainly in the vintage Martinez/tuxedo mode. I added a spritz of lemon to sharpen it slightly.

Roberto Boertje

21st June 2024 at 23:30

Vey nice, but certainly not dry enough for my taste. I'd cut the maraschino in half next time.

John Hinojos

4th June 2024 at 00:33

Retried this after our first 4 years ago. Changed my rating up and added to my favourites. Dropped the cherry garnish as I find they made the cocktail a bit sweet. Love anything with absinthe and it shines in this cocktail.
Saw the comments about the Luxardo Maraschino. Sometimes I think people are expecting Maraschino to be strong cherry and sweet like Cherry Heering. Maraschino has a hint of cherry; more between Kirsch and Heering. It has a bit of sweetness, but more alcohol flavour.

Tuber Magnatum

29th January 2022 at 23:18

I love the flavour combination. However, I found it as anonymous a tad sweet / unctuous from the maraschino. Will try with slightly less next time as it is for me otherwise a lovely drink. I especially enjoyed the hint of Absinthe.

Beth Hagberg

5th October 2021 at 12:03

Interesting. I’m still baffled by the taste. Thank you for your input

Beth Hagberg

4th October 2021 at 23:09

Simon, it’s Luxardo, 32% alcohol. I have not been impressed from the moment I opened it. It smells like vermouth and is not what I thought it would be.

Simon Difford

5th October 2021 at 07:04

Luxardo is a high-quality brand and will definitely not have "turned". It is aged for two years in ash wood vats.

Beth Hagberg

4th October 2021 at 00:02

Meh. Is it possible my marischino has turned? I have only had it a year, and I keep it in a cool cabinet. It never has tasted good. Is it possible it was bad when I purchased it?

Gary Penn

14th April 2023 at 16:54

Oh! Our first ever bottle of Luxardo smells and tastes like Plasticene :( Much prefer Maraska.

Simon Difford

4th October 2021 at 07:26

Doubtful your maraschino has turned. What brand is it and what alc./vol.?

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