Cocktail Drinks: Classic Martini

The History of the Coctail

The word "cocktail" conjures up all sorts of images, mainly associated with decadence, indulgence and celebration. A cocktail is enjoyed at a slower pace than the other drinks,created with such care and attention to detail that it is often saved for special occasions. A cocktail is essentially a spirit base (usually gin, vodka, whiskey, rum or tequila) combined with a mixer, which could be a fruit juice, tonic, or another non spirit alcohol. A third ingredient, the flavoring is sometimes added to compliment the base spirit and to add a more distinctive taste to the cocktail. This can be anything from Angostura bitters to a sugar cube. Although there are now many thousands of cocktails in existence, the "classic" drinks will generally only include a combination of these three components. (the cocktail bible by Sarah Ford)

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".

Ingredients:

1/2 to 1 ounce dry vermouth
2 ounces dry gin
1 green olive for garnish
ice

How to do:

Fill shaker with the 1/2 to 1 ounce of dry vermouth, 2 ounces dry gin and ice.
Then shake it well until the shaker gets cold.
Strain into a chilled martini glass.
If you want to garnish it, put an olive.