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The Martini

The Martini is renowned for its simplicity and balance. The gin provides a herbaceous and aromatic backbone, complemented by the dry, slightly bitter notes of the vermouth. The drink is typically served "straight up," meaning it’s chilled and strained into a chilled cocktail glass, leaving behind any ice. The garnish—whether a twist of lemon peel or a green olive—adds a subtle touch of flavor and visual appeal.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
1 minute
Total Time 6 minutes
Servings: 1
Course: Drinks
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 2 Ounces London Dry Gin I prefer Bombay Sapphire, Beefeaters, or Tangueray.
  • 1 Cap Full Dry Vermouth I prefer Noilly Prat. I visited the distillery in France, and it is quite impressive.
  • 2 Olives I like fresh blue cheese olives or Tassos garlic and jalapeno olives

Equipment

  • 1 Cocktail Shaker
  • 1 2 ounce shot glass
  • 1 Martini Glass

Method
 

  1. Take Martini glass and fill with ice to chill.
    martini glass chilling
  2. Pour a capful of the vermouth and set aside.
    dry vermouth
  3. Fill shaker half full of ice and pour shot the gin into shaker. Shake vigorously for 30 seconds.
    Shaker with ice
  4. Empty the ice from the Martini glass and empty capful of vermouth into the glass. Swirl the vermouth around the glass and empty out.
    dry vermouth
  5. Strain the shaker into the Martini glass.
    shaker
  6. Garnish with either olives or a lemon twist. Enjoy a great classic cocktail.
    martini

Notes

A martini is traditional a drink featuring London Dry Gin. However, the vodka martini is also quite popular. 
I prefer olives as a garnish, but a lemon twist is also good. Miss Becky often garnishes with a lemon twist.
A martini can also be stirred instead of shaken. Many people prefer it stirred. They say that shaken bruises the gin. Go figure.