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Martini (cocktail)
Encyclopedia
The martini is a cocktail
made with gin
and vermouth
, and garnished with an olive or a lemon twist. Over the years, the martini has become one of the best-known mixed alcoholic beverages. H. L. Mencken
called the martini "the only American invention as perfect as the sonnet
" and E. B. White
called it "the elixir of quietude".
specified ingredients: 5.5 cl (1.9 oz
.) gin, 1.5 cl (0.5 oz.) dry vermouth
Pouring all ingredients into a mixing glass with ice cubes, the ingredients are mixed then strained and served "straight up" (without ice) in a chilled cocktail glass
and garnished with either a green olive or a twist of lemon
(a strip of the peel, usually squeezed or twisted to express volatile oils onto the surface of the drink).
Although there are many variations, in modern practice the standard martini is a mix of gin
coupled with dry vermouth
usually in a five-to-one ratio. Shaker mixing is common due to influences of popular culture
, notably the fictional spy James Bond
, who always asked for his vodka martini to be "shaken, not stirred
". However, stirring has a long history. Harry Craddock
's Savoy Cocktail Book (1930) prescribes stirring for all its martini recipes.
Noel Coward
suggested that a perfect martini should be made by "filling a glass with gin then waving it in the general direction of Italy", meaning the less vermouth added to the gin the better the resulting drink.
The dryness of a martini refers to the amount of vermouth
used in the drink, with a very dry martini having little or no Vermouth.. Conversely, a wet martini has a significant amount of vermouth
added.
A dirty martini contains a splash of olive brine or olive juice.
. Alternatively, the people of Martinez say the drink was first created by a bartender in their town. Another theory links the first dry martini to the name of a bartender who concocted the drink at the Knickerbocker Hotel in New York City
in 1911 or 1912.
But it was Prohibition
and the relative ease of illegal gin manufacture that led to the martini's rise as the predominant cocktail of the mid 20th century in the United States. With the repeal of Prohibition, and the ready availability of quality gin, the drink became progressively dryer. In the 1970s and 80s, the martini came to be seen as old-fashioned and was replaced by more intricate cocktails and wine spritzers, but the mid-1990s saw a resurgence in the drink and an explosion of new versions.
Some of the newer versions (e.g., appletini
, peach martini, chocolate martini, espresso martini), take their name not from the ingredients, but from the cocktail glass
they share with the martini.
Cocktail
A cocktail is an alcoholic mixed drink that contains two or more ingredients—at least one of the ingredients must be a spirit.Cocktails were originally a mixture of spirits, sugar, water, and bitters. The word has come to mean almost any mixed drink that contains alcohol...
made with gin
Gin
Gin is a spirit which derives its predominant flavour from juniper berries . Although several different styles of gin have existed since its origins, it is broadly differentiated into two basic legal categories...
and vermouth
Vermouth
Vermouth is a fortified wine flavored with various dry ingredients. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced around the late 18th and early 19th centuries in Italy and France...
, and garnished with an olive or a lemon twist. Over the years, the martini has become one of the best-known mixed alcoholic beverages. H. L. Mencken
H. L. Mencken
Henry Louis "H. L." Mencken was an American journalist, essayist, magazine editor, satirist, acerbic critic of American life and culture, and a scholar of American English. Known as the "Sage of Baltimore", he is regarded as one of the most influential American writers and prose stylists of the...
called the martini "the only American invention as perfect as the sonnet
Sonnet
A sonnet is one of several forms of poetry that originate in Europe, mainly Provence and Italy. A sonnet commonly has 14 lines. The term "sonnet" derives from the Occitan word sonet and the Italian word sonetto, both meaning "little song" or "little sound"...
" and E. B. White
E. B. White
Elwyn Brooks White , usually known as E. B. White, was an American writer. A long-time contributor to The New Yorker magazine, he also wrote many famous books for both adults and children, such as the popular Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little, and co-authored a widely used writing guide, The...
called it "the elixir of quietude".
Preparation
IBAIBA Official Cocktail
An IBA Official Cocktail is one of many cocktails selected by the International Bartenders Association for use in the annual World Cocktail Competition in bartending...
specified ingredients: 5.5 cl (1.9 oz
Fluid ounce
A fluid ounce is a unit of volume equal to about 28.4 mL in the imperial system or about 29.6 mL in the US system. The fluid ounce is distinct from the ounce, which measures mass...
.) gin, 1.5 cl (0.5 oz.) dry vermouth
Pouring all ingredients into a mixing glass with ice cubes, the ingredients are mixed then strained and served "straight up" (without ice) in a chilled cocktail glass
Cocktail glass
A cocktail glass is a stemmed glass which has a cone-shaped bowl placed upon a stem above a flat base. It is mainly used to serve cocktails. Its form derives from the fact that all cocktails are traditionally served chilled and contain an aromatic element...
and garnished with either a green olive or a twist of lemon
Lemon
The lemon is both a small evergreen tree native to Asia, and the tree's ellipsoidal yellow fruit. The fruit is used for culinary and non-culinary purposes throughout the world – primarily for its juice, though the pulp and rind are also used, mainly in cooking and baking...
(a strip of the peel, usually squeezed or twisted to express volatile oils onto the surface of the drink).
Although there are many variations, in modern practice the standard martini is a mix of gin
Gin
Gin is a spirit which derives its predominant flavour from juniper berries . Although several different styles of gin have existed since its origins, it is broadly differentiated into two basic legal categories...
coupled with dry vermouth
Vermouth
Vermouth is a fortified wine flavored with various dry ingredients. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced around the late 18th and early 19th centuries in Italy and France...
usually in a five-to-one ratio. Shaker mixing is common due to influences of popular culture
Popular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
, notably the fictional spy James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
, who always asked for his vodka martini to be "shaken, not stirred
Shaken, not stirred
"Shaken, not stirred" is a catchphrase of Ian Fleming's fictional British Secret Service agent James Bond, and his preference for how he wished his martini prepared. The phrase first appears in the novel Diamonds Are Forever , though Bond does not actually say the line until Dr...
". However, stirring has a long history. Harry Craddock
Harry Craddock
Harry Craddock was a United States citizen who left during Prohibition and joined the American Bar at the Savoy Hotel, London, in 1920. Craddock was one of the most famous cocktail barmen of the 1920s and 1930s. Craddock’s “The Savoy Cocktail Book” was published in 1930, and is still in print...
's Savoy Cocktail Book (1930) prescribes stirring for all its martini recipes.
Noel Coward
Noël Coward
Sir Noël Peirce Coward was an English playwright, composer, director, actor and singer, known for his wit, flamboyance, and what Time magazine called "a sense of personal style, a combination of cheek and chic, pose and poise".Born in Teddington, a suburb of London, Coward attended a dance academy...
suggested that a perfect martini should be made by "filling a glass with gin then waving it in the general direction of Italy", meaning the less vermouth added to the gin the better the resulting drink.
The dryness of a martini refers to the amount of vermouth
Vermouth
Vermouth is a fortified wine flavored with various dry ingredients. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced around the late 18th and early 19th centuries in Italy and France...
used in the drink, with a very dry martini having little or no Vermouth.. Conversely, a wet martini has a significant amount of vermouth
Vermouth
Vermouth is a fortified wine flavored with various dry ingredients. The modern versions of the beverage were first produced around the late 18th and early 19th centuries in Italy and France...
added.
A dirty martini contains a splash of olive brine or olive juice.
Martini origins and mixology
The exact origin of the martini is unclear. Numerous cocktails with names and ingredients similar to the modern-day martini were first seen in bartending guides of the late 19th century. One popular theory suggests it evolved from a cocktail called the Martinez served at the Occidental Hotel in San Francisco sometime in the early 1860s, which people frequented before taking an evening ferry to the nearby town of MartinezMartinez, California
Martinez is a city and the county seat of Contra Costa County, California, United States. The population was 35,824 at the 2010 census. The downtown is notable for its large number of preserved old buildings...
. Alternatively, the people of Martinez say the drink was first created by a bartender in their town. Another theory links the first dry martini to the name of a bartender who concocted the drink at the Knickerbocker Hotel in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1911 or 1912.
But it was Prohibition
Prohibition in the United States
Prohibition in the United States was a national ban on the sale, manufacture, and transportation of alcohol, in place from 1920 to 1933. The ban was mandated by the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution, and the Volstead Act set down the rules for enforcing the ban, as well as defining which...
and the relative ease of illegal gin manufacture that led to the martini's rise as the predominant cocktail of the mid 20th century in the United States. With the repeal of Prohibition, and the ready availability of quality gin, the drink became progressively dryer. In the 1970s and 80s, the martini came to be seen as old-fashioned and was replaced by more intricate cocktails and wine spritzers, but the mid-1990s saw a resurgence in the drink and an explosion of new versions.
Some of the newer versions (e.g., appletini
Appletini
An apple martini is a cocktail containing vodka and one or more of apple juice, apple cider, apple liqueur, or apple brandy. Optionally, vermouth may be included, as in a regular martini...
, peach martini, chocolate martini, espresso martini), take their name not from the ingredients, but from the cocktail glass
Cocktail glass
A cocktail glass is a stemmed glass which has a cone-shaped bowl placed upon a stem above a flat base. It is mainly used to serve cocktails. Its form derives from the fact that all cocktails are traditionally served chilled and contain an aromatic element...
they share with the martini.
See also
- Three martini lunch
- Gibson (cocktail)Gibson (cocktail)The Gibson is a cocktail made with gin and vermouth, and garnished with a pickled onion. The drink bears great similarity to another cocktail, the martini, with the onion garnish being the only differentiating factor.-History:The exact origin of the Gibson is unclear, with numerous popular tales...
- Vesper (cocktail)Vesper (cocktail)The Vesper or Vesper Martini is a cocktail that was originally made of gin, vodka, and Kina Lillet.-Origin:The drink was invented and named by fictional secret agent James Bond in the 1953 novel Casino Royale....
- Bronx (cocktail)
- List of cocktails
- Martini ShotMartini ShotMartini Shot is a Hollywood term that describes the final shot set-up of the day. According to Dave Knox, author of the film industry slang guide Strike the Baby and Kill the Blonde, the Martini Shot was so named because "the next shot is out of a glass", referring to a post-wrap drink.Other named...
, a film industry term for the last shot of the day, because "the next shot is out of a glass"
External links
- History of the Martini: A talk with Max Rudin 29 December 1997 (real audio format)