MARTINI DREAMS
The iconic Martini, a bracing mix of gin and vermouth, seems like it ought to be the most straightforward drink in the world. Yet, it’s often misunderstood.
Even the most rigorous historians can’t pinpoint the Martini’s conception. Did it first show up at New York’s Manhattan Club or Turf Club? Or in Martinez, California, with sweetened Old Tom gin? And when did it start spawning so many variations? Most agree, however, that its heyday began in the 1880s, which coincides with the advent of the “Dry Martini.”
Today, “dry” is code for “minimal vermouth,” says Robert Simonson, author of The Martini Cocktail (Ten Speed Press, 2019). But that’s not how it was first interpreted.
“In the
