The Classic Martini Recipes

Steps:

• Nice Ice, Baby:
• Hold a large ice cube in the center of your palm. Use the back of a bar spoon (really, any spoon will work) to crack it into smaller jagged pieces. Transfer ice to a mixing glass and repeat until you've got enough cracked ice to fill glass.
• A Smooth Mix:
• Add gin and vermouth (it doesn't matter what order). Just like in cooking, you should taste your ingredients separately and try to pair them thoughtfully (see chart at right for other Saunders pairings).
• It's All in the Wrist:
• Bond was wrong. Shaking breaks up the ice, which leads to overdiluted martinis. Some dilution is good; it softens the spirits so you can taste the botanicals, not just the heat of the alcohol. Rapidly stir 50 times- count to 50, for real!-in a circular motion; the outside of the glass will be very cold and frosty.
• No Strain, No Gain:
• Using a Hawthorne strainer, which fits snugly over the top of a mixing glass, or a slotted spoon (in a pinch), strain martini into a chilled Nick and Nora glass. Strain any remaining martini into a "sidecar" (use a minicarafe- on ice, of course), possibly the greatest drinking add-on ever invented.

Steps:

• Stir ingredients over ice until exceedingly well chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass and garnish with a lemon twist.

Steps:

• In mixing glass or cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine gin and vermouth. Stir well, about 30 seconds, then strain into martini glass. Garnish with olive or lemon twist and serve.

Steps:

• Pour ice, vodka and vermouth into a glass shaker. Shake and pour into a martini glass. Garnish with olives or lemon twist.

Steps:

• Add ingredients to a cocktail shaker filled with ice; shake vigorously.
• Strain into a chilled glass.
• Garnish with olive.
• **Cajun Martini: substitute jalapeno-infused vodka or gin for regular gin; garnish with a pickled tomato or okra, or a tiny whole red or green chile.
• **Dirty Martini: add 1 to 2 teaspoons olive brine.
• **Fino Martini: substitute 2 teaspoons fino sherry for the vermouth.
• **Gibson: garnish with a cocktail onion.
• **Paisley Martini: reduce vermouth to 1 1/2 teaspoon; add 1 teaspoon Scotch; garnish with lemon twist.
• **Perfect Martini: use half sweet vermouth and half dry vermouth; garnish with orange slice.
• **Rumtini: substitute light rum for gin; garnish with lime twist.
• **Saketini: substitute sake for the vermouth; garnish with lemon twist or olive.
• **Scotini: substitute Scotch for the vermouth; garnish with lemon twist.
• **Sweet Martini: substitute sweet vermouth for the dry vermouth; garnish with orange slice.
• Tequini: substitute tequila for gin.