Head to head
Breakfast Martini and White Lady side by side: what changes in the recipe, the balance, the strength and the calories.
The difference
The Breakfast Martini is a White Lady with a spoonful of orange marmalade shaken in. The marmalade brings bitter peel and a little sugar; the White Lady uses more triple sec instead, so they end up close in sweetness.
By the numbers
Both have gin, triple sec and lemon juice. Only the Breakfast Martini has orange marmalade. In parts, a Breakfast Martini is 3½ gin, 1 triple sec, 1 lemon and ¾ orange marmalade; a White Lady is 2 gin, 1½ triple sec and 1 lemon. By volume, the Breakfast Martini is 54% spirit, 16% liqueur, 16% citrus and 14% syrup and sugar; the White Lady is 45% spirit, 33% liqueur and 22% citrus.
They are about equally strong in the glass (17.6% and 17.8% ABV), but the White Lady is the bigger drink, so it holds more alcohol (1.58 standard drinks against 1.47). Calories and sugar are close: about 182 and 189 calories, 8.9 g and 8.0 g of sugar. Both are shaken; the Breakfast Martini is served in a martini glass, the White Lady in a coupe.
Sours · Gin
The ratio · 3½ : 1 : 1 : ¾
Full Breakfast Martini recipe →
Highlighted: not in the White Lady.
Sours · Gin
The ratio · 2 : 1½ : 1
Highlighted: not in the Breakfast Martini.
Each drink sits nearer the corners it has more of: spirit, vermouth and bitter, citrus, mixer, syrup or liqueur. The gray dots are the other classics. Explore the full ratio map.
Breakfast Martini vs.
White Lady vs.