Martini Monday: Very Dry and a Little Dirty

There are only two kinds of martinis: gin and vodka. The brightly colored, strangely flavored drinks served at your local Applebee's with the same name are a far cry from an actual martini. Having said that, the question of how to make a martini is far from simple. There is the matter of dryness (how much - or how little - vermouth), garnish (olive or lemon twist? a cocktail onion makes it a Gibson), on the rocks or straight up... Here's how I like my martinis.

Vodka Martini (though I do like gin martinis, vodka is my favorite)

First, pour some dry vermouth into a cocktail shaker. Swirl it around, coat the whole thing, and then pour it all out. (As Prairie Oyster's undergraduate advisor liked to say, "First you show the vermouth to the vodka, and then you take it away!)

Put a few ice cubes in the shaker. I like to use four.

Pour in 3-4 shots of good vodka. Today I used Chopin, which I highly, highly recommend.

Shake until it's good and cold.

Put 4 olives in a martini glass, and a little spoonful of the olive juice. [secret message to several NYC bartenders: remember the redhead who used to order "vodka martini with extra olives" all night long? that was me. Vegetables are important.]

Strain the vodka into the glass.

Enjoy.

Cross-posted at What the hell is wrong with you?