It’s bobbing up on drinks lists everywhere from pubs to hatted fine diners – but not quite as you may remember it. Plus, how to make your own at home.
Fred Siggins
Nineties fashions are back, big time, and food and drink are far from immune to the tides of what’s trendy. In 2025, cocktail lists across Australia are getting a nostalgic nudge with modern riffs on late-20th century classics such as the Cosmopolitan and the Lychee Martini. Also joining the retro party is the Appletini.
In the ’90s, the word “martini” was used to describe basically any cocktail that was served “up” – that is, in a stemmed martini glass sans ice – and drinks like the Espresso Martini and the Pornstar Martini were popular on lists across the world.
These drinks had very little to do with the actual martini, which is essentially just a classy way of drinking two shots of cold gin. But these fruit-based ’tinis were an important bridge from the sugary, artificially flavoured cocktails of the ’80s to the global craft cocktail revival that took hold in the 2000s. And chief among them was, of course, the mighty Appletini.
The Appletini gets a glow-up
Back in the ’90s, Appletinis were generally bright green and sweet-tart, employing apple liqueurs that tasted more like lollies than anything grown on trees. These days, the Appletini has had a modern glow-up, using quality ingredients and the craft techniques honed by professional bartenders over the past 30 years.
Where to sip an Appletini in Sydney
At Sydney’s New York-style negroni bar Herb’s Taverne, part of the hugely influential Mucho Group of cocktail venues, the Appletini was a recent addition to its list of fun and approachable cocktails.
“We make our Appletini as a sour with bison grass vodka, apple syrup, lemon juice and a few dashes of raspberry eau de vie, all shaken up to a frothy head,” says Mucho Group creative director Jeremy Blackmore.
‘I’m celebrating the return of the ‘tini because I think making drinking fun again is pretty important these days.’
Jeremy Blackmore, Mucho Group creative director
“It’s a super-simple, crowd-pleasing drink, but with enough complexity from
the bison grass and the eau de vie to make it feel new.
“I’m celebrating the return of the ’tini – from the French Martini to the Pornstar − because I think making drinking fun again is pretty important these days.”
The Appletini is getting a rerun at Smoke rooftop bar at Sydney’s Barangaroo House, too. “We wanted to present a drink that looked exactly like the old-school version, but make it booze-forward and with added complexity,” says Reece Griffiths, group bars manager for Solotel.
“With our current menu, we wanted to revive some forgotten cocktails that don’t get much love, and see if we could make them delicious and modern.”
Smoke’s Appletini includes unaged French apple brandy, a fortified pear juice from Normandy called Pommeau, nashi pear sake and a cinnamon myrtle and habanero liqueur from Victoria. Sounds radical, dude.
Where to sip an Appletini in Victoria
The Appletini is also appearing in some unexpected places, like the cocktail list of two-hatted fine diner Barragunda on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula. Here, the drink is made with calvados macerated with celery (leaf, flower and seed), fresh green dill seed, and the pulp from six varieties of heritage apples grown on the restaurant grounds.
Rounded out with house-made vermouth, fresh apple juice and Barragunda’s own honey, it’s about as far from the artificially flavoured, lurid green ’90s version as you can get.
At the North Fitzroy Arms in Melbourne’s inner north – recently awarded The Age Good Food Guide Pub of the Year – the Appletini is one of only seven cocktails on the drinks list. Their take leans into classic ’90s flavours, sweet-tart and delicious, but still with nods to modernity.
“With our version we really layered the acidity to make that a focal point of the drink,” says bartender Hayley McCarthy. “We also pre-batch the recipe and serve it ice-cold from the freezer, so it shows up with a lovely viscosity and a translucent green colour.”
Asked why the Appletini is making a comeback, McCarthy says its reputation as a little tacky was part of the appeal. “Appletinis are fun. What more do you need from a cocktail?” she says.
“It’s now one of our bestsellers all year round, no matter the season. To me, nothing says ‘5pm Friday arvo’ like an Appletini on the footpath out the front of your local pub.”
At Carlton North’s Bar Bellamy, a version of the Appletini created by bartender Alex Gondzioulis offered over winter had a decidedly culinary approach, featuring house-made apple vermouth, unaged Calvados (an apple brandy from Normandy, France) and kissabel apple cordial.
Light, crisp and with balanced sweetness and acidity that makes for an incredibly well-rounded drink, Gondzioulis’s Appletini somehow ticks the boxes of both a traditional martini and the fruity fun of the ’90s version.
“As bartenders, we went through the times when we had to wear suspenders
and bow ties to legitimise what we do, but at this point, we’ve earned the right to have a little fun,” Gondzioulis says.
Along with glitzy rooftops and hatted, paddock-to-plate restaurants, the Appletini can now also be found at your humble local pub. Back when the drink first rose to prominence, you would be lucky to get a G&T with fresh lime at most Aussie pubs, let alone a properly mixed cocktail. But over the past 30 years, cocktails have become an important part of the drinking culture of
Australia, with pubs no exception.
How to make a simple modern Appletini at home
You don’t have to grow your own apples or make your own vermouth for a tasty version of the Appletini that’s approved for modern palates. With a few fresh ingredients and quality spirits, you’ll be drinking like JD from Scrubs in no time.
INGREDIENTS
- 30ml Blanche Calvados or unaged Australian apple brandy*
- 30ml gin (or vodka if you prefer)
- 20ml Melbourne Moonshine Apple Pie Shine (a locally made spiced apple liqueur)
- 30ml cloudy apple juice
- 15ml freshly squeezed lemon juice
METHOD
- Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker with lots of ice.
- Shake vigorously for about 10 seconds, until the outside of the shaker starts to get frosty.
- Strain the drink through a fine strainer into a chilled martini glass.
- Garnish with a fan of thinly sliced apple
*There are some great local apple brandies available such as Charles Oats from Tasmania or Schnapps Idea from Victoria
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