Martini

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A Martini is a mixed cocktail drink that has been called by some "America's most lethal weapon."

Nowadays, anything, practically even chocolate milk, is called a Martini as long as it's poured into a Martini glass. But the gospel truth is that the real thing only ever has three ingredients in it: gin, white (aka French) vermouth, and olives, and it is never served on ice.

The age-old fight over a change to the Classic Three concerned lemon. Some like a twist of lemon; some say there is no place for lemon in a Martini.

This battle, though, has been overtaken by another one, which has caused for the former two opposing camps to join forces in common allegiance to oppose a new, common foe: the trend to swap vodka in for gin, because today's generation of drinkers prefer alcohol with less taste. But the genuine article has gin in it, not Vodka. If someone just says Martini, and knows their drinks, they mean a Martini with gin. If an educated drinker wanted a vodka Martini, they would specify that. Still, many bartenders now ask whether people want a gin or a vodka martini. Bartenders know that by default, a martini is gin, but they don't want the wastage of a customer rejecting it because the customer didn't know any better.

And, because Martini drinkers can be very choosy even about which gin and which vermouth is used, some bartenders will head off problems by asking them straight out which gin and which vermouth they want it made with.

Some people are so particular about their Martinis that they won't drink any Martinis other than the ones they've mixed themselves at home.

Gin is always the highest quantity of liquid in a Martini.

A standard Martini is 3 parts gin to 1 part French vermouth; dry is 6 to 1 or 7 to 1 (meaning, 6 parts or 7 parts gin to 1 part vermouth.) The higher the ratio in favour in gin, the drier it is. And the drier it is, the higher the alcohol content, as the stronger gin is replacing weaker vermouth. 6 to 1 is perhaps the classic ratio for a dry Martini, and it was the ratio praised by the songwriter Tom Lehrer (1928 - ): "Hearts full of youth, hearts full of truth, Six parts gin to one part vermouth."

The alcohol ratio of a 3 to 1 martini is 37 percent. 6 to 1 is 39.6% alcohol; 7 to 1 is 40% alcohol. The highest it can be is the alcohol content of the gin, which is usually around 42%.

Dryness has become an obsession amongst some connoisseurs. Dry Martini fanatics will measure their vermouth with an eye dropper; some say just put the vermouth bottle next to the gin bottle and tell it to wave hello.

Shaking a Martini results in a colder Martini, but also makes it cloudy, which causes it to lose some eye appeal. Shaking it mixes air in, which stirred fans say makes the taste too sharp (they call it "bruised.") It also mixes the vermouth in more thoroughly, which stirred fans say takes away the complexity of the drink. Somerset Maugham summed up this viewpoint: "Martinis should never be shaken. They should always be stirred so that the molecules lie sensuously on top of each other." [1]

Stirred Martinis are clearer.

James Bond's shaken Martini was not a Martini at all, but rather a Vodka Martini. And in fact, to Bond's credit, in Casino Royale, where Bond and his drink first appeared, he called it not a Martini but a "vesper." Bond's Martini use Kina Lillet Vermouth, aka Lillet, which contains a lot of quinine. This vermouth is sometimes used as an apéritif, and dates back to 1887.

Besides, even if it were a real, authentic Martini in terms of ingredients, once a Martini is shaken it is no longer a Martini: it is called instead a "Bradford."


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[1] W. Somerset Maugham (1874–1965.) From: In Conversations with Willie: Robin Maugham, 1978.



Martini Variations

BradfordDry Martini that has been shaken instead of being stirred.
DickensDry Martini with no garnish (neither an olive nor a lemon twist.)
Dirty MartiniA tidge of brine from the olive jar is added to the Martini.
GibsonA Martini garnished with a pickled cocktail onion (usually 2 or 3 on a skewer) instead of an olive or a lemon twist (which some call a "perversion.")

There are two theories about the Gibson name: drink was invented by or first made for an illustrator for Life magazine, named Charles Dana Gibson. Gibson popularized the image of the independent but fashionable woman, always tightly corseted.

Occasionally also called a "Beefeater."
FranklinA Dry Martini garnished with two olives.
NakedA Martini made from gin and vermouth that have been chilled in the freezer. No ice is used in mixing them.
Wet MartiniA Martini that has more vermouth in it. The larger the percentage of vermouth that is used, the "wetter" the Martini.

History Notes for Martini

There are no real facts around how the Martini was invented. It is, naturally, attributed to several different bartenders.


The town of Martinez, about 30 miles (48 km) north of San Francisco, claims to be where they were invented in 1860, though this is discredited by most.

Early versions of Martinis were sweet. They used old Tom Gin, and would be garnished with a maraschino cherry.

They were still a sweet drink at the end of the 1800s. They were half gin, half sweet vermouth, with sugar syrup and orange bitters, and a cherry.

There is a strong case to be made that they were even made from Italian (aka red) vermouth: "Up to this week the Manhattan and Martini cocktails have been practically unknown, and when some one introduced the amber-colored fluids there was a mad rush. Many thought the beverages as harmless as beer, hence their downfall." [1]

Other quotes from newspapers showing the evolution of Martinis:

"Olives in Cocktails. The double hotel sells countless cocktails, of which the Manhattan and the Martini have the call, so far as popularity goes. For those who do not relish a cocktail of whisky, there is a drink made up of equal parts of French vermouth and Plymouth gin, with a dash of orange bitters. This is preferred by many to the combination of Italian vermouth and Tom gin. Cocktails no longer contain the cherry at the bottom of the glass -- that is they are not so served unless there is a request to that effect. Cherries are going out along with other sweeteners in drinks. The present demand is for the dry, and it is considered that an olive is the best substitute for the sugary fruit, and all of the swell grillrooms now serve 'cocktail olives' -- pitted, by the way -- with this universally favored drink." [2]

"A Martini cocktail is two-thirds Old Tom or dry gin, one-third Vermouth and three dashes of Orange or Angostura bitters." [3]

"The real MARTINI COCKTAIL must be made with Martini & Rossi ITALIAN Vermouth. Protect yourself against pernicious substitution. The genuine and original has the Agent's yellow label." [4]

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[1] Whole State Celebrated: Passing of Prohibition in Vermont Marked by Widespread Drunkenness. Decatur, Illinois: The Decatur Review. Wednesday, 10 June 1903. Evening edition. Page 4.
[2] New Things in Tipples. Centralia, Wisconsin: The Centralia Enterprise And Tribune. Saturday, 4 December 1897. Page 13.
[3] McSosh, Michael. Americans Take The Mixed Drinks, But Few Know Just What They Are Getting. Hamilton, Ohio: The Republican News. Tuesday, 3 March 1908. Page 6.
[4] Advertisement in The New York Times. New York. Monday, 22 August 1904. Page 7.

Literature & Lore about Martini

"High balls seem simple enough but they require a nicety of proportion to be good. Martini cocktails are very difficult to produce perfectly, and yet the feminine drink mixer feels that her education is incomplete unless she can make a Martini, which to a great extent has entirely replaced the old whiskey cocktail and Manhattan. While she is learning she will spoil any amount of the necessary liquids, producing mixtures that must be thrown out as soon as tasted."


-- DRINKS FOR HOT WEATHER. Women Learning to Mix Them -- New Fashions -- A Bartender's Advice. In Fort Wayne Morning Journal-Gazette. Fort Wayne, Indiana. Saturday, 13 July 1901. Page 4.


"Let's get out of these wet clothes and into a dry martini."

-- Robert Benchley (humourist & actor, 1889-1945).

Bond: "A dry martini," he said. "One. In a deep champagne goblet."

Bartender: "Oui, monsieur."

Bond: "Just a moment. Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon-peel. Got it?"

-- James Bond in: Ian Fleming. Casino Royale, Chapter 7. 1953.

Language Notes about Martini

First appeared in print as "Martini" in 1888.
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Acknowlegements

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"I should never have switched from scotch to martinis." -- reputed last words of Humphrey Bogart (1899 - 1957.)