The One Spirit Martha Stewart Steers Clear Of

Raise your hand if there's a liquor you'll never drink again. Now keep your hand up if the night (or morning, or Wednesday afternoon — no judgement!) that made you swear off the drink for good occurred in college. Still up? Me, too. But don't worry, we're in good company. In 2024, Cook, homemaker, and media mogul Martha Stewart admitted that she hadn't had gin since her college days. Stars: they're just like us!

According to the Daily Mail, Stewart revealed her aversion to gin at the Food Network's Food and Wine festival. "I got so drunk on gin in college that I have not ever had gin since," the 83-year-old explained. That means Stewart — who graduated from Barnard College at Columbia University in 1962 — avoided gin for over 60 years. Her youthful exuberance didn't turn her into a teetotaler, though. The star loves a good cocktail, and she makes her drinks with the care and attention to detail that she's famous for. 

Stewart's favorite cocktail is a caipirinha, a Brazilian drink made with sugar, lime, and cachaça. But while caipirinhas may be Stewart's all-time favorite, martinis are her signature drink. Fans can try for themselves at her restaurant, The Bedford by Martha Stewart. The restaurant, which is located at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel, features an exact replica of her kitchen and serves cocktails from Stewart's own recipes. Naturally, the star makes her martinis with vodka.

Stewart's martinis feature dry vermouth and a whopping 4 ounces of Żubrówka bison grass vodka, which is made in Poland and is infused with actual grass. Luckily for those of us without Martha Stewart salaries, the vodka is widely available and relatively affordable — though you might want to use a lighter hand than Stewart for the sake of your wallet and your liver. 

Stewart loves the little shards of ice that come from a shaken drink, so she makes her martinis Bond-style: shaken, not stirred. For the garnish, the star skips olives in favor of lemon peel. It makes for a lighter, brighter drink and complements the herbal taste of the Zubrówka vodka.

Lemon drops are one of Stewart's favorites. Her recipe includes simple syrup made with Meyers lemons, fresh-squeezed lemon juice, and Cointreau. When she's making lemon drops, she opts for Belvedere Vodka instead of Żubrówka. Like Żubrówka, Belvedere Vodka is made in Poland: She opts for Polish vodkas as a nod to her heritage. "I like ice in my drinks because if I'm going to drink... I keep adding ice to it during dinner. I only drink one drink and I keep diluting it with ice," Stewart told Allrecipes. You'll need that dilution. Like her martinis, Stewart's lemon drops are strong. In fall, Stewart swaps her decidedly summery lemon drop for bourbon-based drinks. Her favorite? Bourbon sours. For Thanksgiving, she adds apple cider for a seasonal touch.

Stewart finally ventured into gin, too. At the Food and Wine event, she promised to try G.I.N, a new spirit from friend and collaborator, Snoop Dogg. "I can't wait to taste your gin and juice!" she told the rapper. Snoop Dogg may be better known for other substances, but gin has long played a part in his persona: His 1993 single "Gin and Juice" is considered a classic. Like Snoop Dogg, I'm partial to gin — so I hope Stewart has gotten over her aversion to the drink. I have a hunch she hasn't, though. I've tried Snoop's INDOGGO gin. If G.I.N is anything like it, she won't be back for seconds.