Martini

The martini is a classic cocktail made by stirring or shaking gin with dry vermouth, typically garnished with an olive or a twist of lemon peel. Its exact origin is disputed and several competing accounts place its emergence in the United States in the second half of the nineteenth century, evolving from earlier gin cocktails toward the drier, more gin-forward proportions familiar today. Vodka martinis, substituting vodka for gin, became popular in the later twentieth century as an alternative style. The martini is widely regarded as one of the defining cocktails of American drinking culture and is often served very cold in the drinks distinctive stemmed glass.