There is a quiet shift taking place behind the bar. One that moves away from spectacle and returns to something more elemental, flavour, provenance, and purpose. The martini, long a symbol of restraint, is being reinterpreted through a distinctly modern lens. And, unexpectedly, olive oil has entered the conversation.
58 and Co, a Haggerston-based distillery known for its considered approach to sustainability, has partnered with Citizens of Soil to produce what may be one of the most quietly disruptive spirits of the moment: an olive oil vodka. Not as novelty, but as a deliberate extension of both flavour and philosophy.
At its core, the spirit is a study in balance. Distilled from British wheat sourced within thirty miles of the distillery, the vodka is infused with rescued extra virgin olive oil from a single-estate harvest in Portugal’s Alentejo region. The oil, produced by grower Ana Cardoso, was originally set aside due to imperfect packaging. Here, it is given a second life, not as a compromise, but as an elevation.
The result is a texture and profile that redefines expectation. Where vodka traditionally leans toward neutrality, this expression introduces a subtle viscosity, a rounded mouthfeel, and a gentle salinity that lingers just enough to recall its Mediterranean origin. It is less about overt flavour and more about structure, how a spirit carries itself across the palate.
Behind the distillation is Carmen O’Neal, a former make-up artist and designer whose path into spirits was anything but conventional. Her approach remains rooted in instinct and sensory experience, shaped perhaps as much by her background as by formal technique. Today, she leads one of the UK’s first female-founded alcohol brands to achieve B Corp status, with sustainability embedded not as a marketing layer but as an operating principle, from solar-powered stills to labels derived from discarded grape skins.
The olive oil vodka forms part of the distillery’s CO-LAB Series, an initiative built around the idea of circularity. Excess, overlooked, or undervalued ingredients are reimagined into something with renewed purpose. In this context, flavour is only the beginning. As olive oil sommelier and Citizens of Soil founder Sarah Fulton Vachon notes, “flavour is the baseline, but purpose and impact are the new premiums.”
That philosophy finds its most natural expression in the glass. The olive oil dirty martini, pared back to vodka and a whisper of vermouth, takes on a new dimension here. The traditional garnish feels almost redundant. A few drops of distilled extra virgin olive oil replace the expected brine, creating a finish that is softer, more integrated, and quietly complex.
Beyond London, the broader category is beginning to evolve. Ammos, a newer entrant, approaches the same Mediterranean inspiration from a different angle. It’s vodka blends olives with Vakhalou lemons from Valencia, each ingredient macerated before undergoing cold distillation through rotary evaporation. The process, conducted at lower temperatures, preserves the delicate oils and herbaceous notes often lost in traditional methods, resulting in a spirit designed not for neutrality, but for expression.
Founder Will Ahier describes it as a departure from the conventional imagery of vodka. “Many premium vodkas lean into cold, snow, ice, mountains. This is something else entirely. It’s about warmth, landscape, and the ingredients that define it.”
Together, these expressions signal a broader movement within modern spirits. One where luxury is no longer defined by rarity alone, but by intention. Where provenance matters as much as process, and where even the most familiar cocktails can be reimagined through a more thoughtful lens.
The martini remains unchanged in form. But in substance, it is evolving quietly, deliberately, and with a new language of flavour that feels entirely of the moment.
