June 18th is National Martini Day

The martini is the Porsche of bar drinks. It is cool, clear and classy. It's for those who know what luxury is. I mean, if James Bond drinks them, then they must be top notch!

A good bartender will know that, if you order a "martini," it should be made with gin. That is a true martini. If you want vodka in your drink, you'll need to order a "vodka martini".

Even this classic drink comes with options though:

Shaken or stirred?

A shaken martini is made in a bar shaker with ice (then shaken until well chilled) which is then strained into a proper martini glass. A stirred martini is also made in a shaker, but it isn't shaken with the ice, a stirrer is used instead. We'll let you be the judge if there is a difference or not. James Bond seemed to think there was.

Dry or... not?

The amount of "dryness" is determined by the amount of vermouth used. We had a bartender one time merely wipe the inside of our martini glass with vermouth to give us a "dry martini".

Do you want olives with that?

Martinis can be garnished with olives, a twist, or cocktail onions. Olives are the most common though. And a good bartender will give you THREE olives. Not an even number, which is considered bad form (and bad luck in some cultures). The most basic olive is the green olive stuffed with a pimiento. Some bars have specialty olives that are stuffed with everything from garlic, to wasabi, to hot pepper, to beef!

And while we respect that some of the new fangled flavored "martinis" like the Appletini or Saketini are valid drinks, they aren't true martinis. Just because you serve them in a martini glass doesn't make them a martini. They really should be named the "Overly Sweet Apple Bachelorette Party Drink" or the "Overpriced Sake-Vodka Drink with Wasabi Olives".

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