Dry Martini

Drink:

Dry Martini

Recipe:

1 and 2/3 oz London Dry Gin

1/3 oz Dry Vermouth 

1 Olive

Add London Dry Gin and Dry Vermouth to an ice-filled mixing glass and stir (alternatively, shake over ice if you are feeling like James Bond). Strain into a cocktail glass, garnish with Olive, and serve.

Description:

I feel classier just looking at this.

Ah, the martini. A classic and iconic cocktail as there has ever been! Its origins are hotly debated, but wherever this drink came from it has cemented itself in western cultural identity harder then imperialism and obesity combined. It's prevalence and popularity have led it to be recognized as one of the Six Basic Drinks in David A. Embury's iconic bartending text The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, as well as an Official Cocktail sanctioned by the International Bartenders Association.

Gaining prevalence in the United States during Prohibition (due to the relative ease with which illegal gin could be distilled domestically), the martini has seen a resurgence in popularity in recent times. It is often associated with high class, wealth, and success (or snobbishness, greed, and pretense, depending on your point of view) and is a staple of black tie events. 

The "dry" part of a dry martini comes from being stingy with the vermouth, thus handing the spotlight over to the harder gin and resulting in a "dryer" drink.

Variants: 

Shaken, not stirred - You all know the iconic line that outlines Agent 007's favorite drink (which was repeated in the inevitable bar scene put in each movie, seemingly just so the current Bond could say that line), and it is at least partially responsible for the resurgence in the martini's popularity. There is plenty of debate on whether or not this method is better/worse/indistinguishable from the traditional stirring method, but one thing is for sure: If you specify the mixing method of this drink at the bar, you will not only look like an asshole, but an unoriginal asshole.

Vodka Martini - What most people in North America think of when they hear "martini", this drink subs out the gin for vodka. Vodka, being more neutral in flavor, allows for a more mild and agreeable drink for most people without sacrificing the potency of the cocktail. Be careful though, there are traditionalists that will shank you for ordering one of these.

(Insert fruit of choice)tini - These cocktails, the most popular of which is no doubt the appletini, have incredibly little to do with an actual martini (they take the name from being served in a cocktail glass, which many mistakenly refer to as a martini glass), and are usually just various mixes of vodka with fruit juices and/or flavored liqueurs (although some do use a gin base and include vermouth, though these are fairly uncommon). Be warned, in American pop-culture appletinis and the like are as closely related to wimps and lightweights as their namesake is to class and refinement. 

Can't imagine why...