How Does the Martini Glass Work?

servant it has been the Martini. That's actually forty years into the Martini cocktail's history. The drink predates the glass. The Martini cocktail has been around in various forms since at least the eighteen eighties, although the circumstances of its

invention are murky. There are at least four competing origin stories about the name and ingredients that is, a combination of gin and vermouth with or without other stuff like a splash of orange bitters or olive brine, or a garnish like an olive or a twist of lemon zest. A story published in the New York Times in nineteen o four claimed that a local judge by the name of Randolph Martin came up with the drink. Another story goes that a gold miner in Martinez, California, asked a

bartender for something special to celebrate a big find. The addition of the olive is sometimes attributed to a Syrian expat by the name of Martini who opened a bar in Paris and brought olives from home, though it's perhaps most likely that multiple people were independently making and refining similar cocktails around the same time, and the name comes from the popular Italian vermouth brand Martini and Rossi. The Martini glass, on the other hand, comes solidly from the

nineteen twenties and the height of the Deco movement. It may have made its debut at the nineteen twenty five International Exhibition in Paris. Art Deco was the theme of the expo that year. The Martini glass was a sort of update to the Champagne coup, which has a similar rounded base and delicate stem, but a perhaps more forgiving,

shallow rounded bowl. Martinis and other cocktails like it were served in Coup's for decades before the new angular glass arrived on the scene, but by the nineteen thirties this new glass design was firmly associated with the Martini cocktail, a clean design for a clean drink. The Martini's simplicity and its glasses design made it a symbol of the

modern American urbanite. By the nineteen forties and fifties, with the rise of mid century modern design, the lip of the Martini glass would grow wider and the stem longer, and through industrialization, this glassware became available for home use by the middle class. The Martini and its glass, partially through the enthusiasm of folks like Franklin Roosevelt, became symbols

of power and modernity. Another New York Times article from nineteen fifty eight called it the symbol of our civilization, and the nineteen fifties, by the way, is when vodka entered the Martini picture. It had probably made its way into the cocktail before then, but the fifties were when the popularity of vodka skyrocketed in the US, and by the nineteen seventies vodka martinis had started to outsell gin martinis. Anyway, the distinctive shape of the Martini glass truly serves one

purpose to look amazing. There are some side benefits of this good looking glass, though, The stem is longer than you'll find on most coops or wine glasses, which keeps the heat of your hand far away from the drink itself. This is important because they're shaken or stirred with ice. Martinis are served straight up, that is, with no ice in the glass, so keeping the heat of your hand away from the drink will help it stay colder longer.

A side note here, people like to argue about whether it's more appropriate to shake or stir a martini with ice in order to chill it, probably because of that James Bond line which first appeared in Doctor No In nineteen fifty eight. A medium dry martini lemon peel, shaken,

not stir vodka. Of course, scientifically speaking, the act of shaking ice with gin or a good vermouth can water them down too much, break up the silky texture, and make some of the delicate aroma and flavor molecules start to dissipate before you get a chance to enjoy them. No less than mit researchers have stated that, according to science, the best way to mix a gin martini is by stirring.

But back to that glass. The wide open of a martini glass also allows more of the drink to come into contact with the air so it can breathe, allowing those flavors to open up and reach your face. Many other cocktail and wine glasses curve in at the rim at least a little, reducing that effect. There's also a rumor floating that back during prohibition it was easier to toss the contents of a Martini glass during raids on speakeasies.

I'm not sure whether that holds up scientifically, but for sure, the propensity of Martini glasses to lead to accidental spills is one reason why they've fallen somewhat out of favor with bartenders. Beautiful though, these glasses. Maybe. Today's episode is based on the article the straight up History of the iconic Martini Glass on Howstuffwork dot Com, written by Kristen hall Geisler. To learn more about the Martini cocktail, check

out my other podcast Savor. We did a whole episode called Cocktail Out the Martini and Brainstuff is producted by Heart Radio in partnership with HowStuffWorks dot Com, who is produced by Tyler Klang. Before more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows,