Dry Martini 'Preferred' (5:1 ratio)

Serve in a

Garnish:

Chilled skewered olive or lemon zest twist (or served Dicken's-style without a garnish)

How to make:

STIR all ingredients with ice and strain into chilled glass.

Review:

This is my go-to Dry Martini, although I arrive at the same 5:1 ratio with a generous 75ml (2½oz) gin to 15ml (½oz) dry vermouth. I chose a 5:1 ratio as our 'preferred' Dry Martini specification in deference to David Embury who writes of this drink in his The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks, "After extensive experimentation I have arrived at the ratio of 5 to 1 as the proportion most pleasing to the average palate. Personally I like a ratio of about 7 to 1 even better, and I know some who prefer a ratio as high as 10 to 1."

The proportion of gin to vermouth is a matter of taste; some say 5 to 1, others that one drop is sufficient. I recommend you ask the drinker how they would like their Martini, in the same manner, that you might ask how they have their steak.

Variant:

The 'Oliver Twist' choice between an olive (stuffed or otherwise) or a lemon zest twist is traditional and these are the two most common garnishes for a Dry Martini. There are, however, a number of variants. A 'Dickens' is a Martini without a twist, a Gibson is a Martini with two onions instead of an olive or a twist and a Franklin Martini is named after Franklin Roosevelt and has two olives.

History:

Evolution of the Dry Martini

Nutrition:

One serving of Dry Martini 'Preferred' (5:1 ratio) contains 150 calories.

Alcohol content:

• 1.7 standard drinks
• 31.18% alc./vol. (62.36° proof)
• 23.5 grams of pure alcohol