THOSE GLASSES

"To this day, the exact origins of the Martini glass are hazy, and the vessel comes with its own apocryphal lore." - Sipsmith.com

The “classic” martini glass, with its iconic wide bowl tapering evenly down to a long stem and base, is an essential part of enjoying both the taste — and the ambience — of the drink. There’s something very cool about the simple design and appearance of the glass, denoting, as it does, a particular kind of drink being consumed. A broad cone shape — of the sort that used to give me heartburn in Algebra — nested atop a wine stem and base. Elegantly simple, with clean lines and structure.

It isn’t an ice-filled tumbler and yet all martinis need to be served ice-cold. It isn’t a wine glass, though is essentially the same from the waist down. It isn’t a snifter, though performs some of the same olfactory service as does the broader and squatter snifter.

Very festive

Anyone who has watched a waiter or waitress struggle with the delivery of a martini (or drink served in a martini glass) knows that it isn’t the most motion-friendly structure in the bar. Its wide mouth and conic shape are given to easy spillage if too much lateral motion occurs. (If I almost sound as if I’m describing an earthquake — in a way, I am. Or tsunami at least.) Any number of times I’ve had some form of spillage, ranging from a slight slop over the brim to a full on rim-clearing tidal wave.

But the martini glass does what it is supposed to, which is give the drink a particular look, as well as letting the consumer taste the gin or vodka properly. The scent of gin is subtle yet present. Vodka is nearly odorless, though the common thought that it is completely odorless is incorrect. It’s quite subdued, but there.

Of course in todays modern bar many more drinks, and a few appetizers, are served in the classic glass. The explosion of “-tini” drinks has been a cottage industry for some years now, and will likely continue for some time. Martini-specific bars are all the rage, though the vast majority of their concoctions are mere nods to the gin original and its vodka successor.

(As I discuss elsewhere, a gin martini is the original, with vodka being the acceptable variation. Or the Vesper, which is gin AND vodka, but that’s a whole different story.)

But not all establishments follow the trend. As can be seen in my CHASING MARTINIS collection, many places use the squat-based variation on the classic glass (right). It has a couple of things about it which are commendable, such as the greater balance control, but lacks the primary benefit of the longer stem. The stem of a martini glass, or wine glasses in general, is to allow the drink to remain cool for as long as possible. The best martinis, as I noted above, are served ice-cold and should remain that way for as long as possible. By grasping the bowl of the glass your hand increases the temperature of the gin (or vodka), thereby affecting the sensation and flavor of the drink. (The same thing occurs in wine, with the exception of brandy. The brandy snifter actively encourages the drinker to warm the drink with their hand. For other wines and most martinis this is wrong.)

Plastic?

Another variation, more out of necessity than design, is the tendency for some places to serve in wine glasses (left). Some restaurants and bars — despite being fully-stocked liquor establishments — keep tumblers and wine glasses, but none of the fancier glassware the most sophisticated places will stock. Although it’s an interesting item photogenically (see opposite) it really doesn’t enhance the drink. And, in most cases, is done to increase profits since the average wine glass used is a smaller pour than would be a full-sized martini glass.

Where's the salt?

(A note on this: martini glasses have increased in size over the years. Like any consumer food product I guess. References to a “three-martini lunch” make a lot more sense when you realize that martini glasses in the ‘fifties and ‘sixties were roughly half the size of our full pours today. Three modern martinis would certainly leave most people incapable of coherently returning to work, and most work environments strongly discourage that sort of behavior in any case.)

The last variation I have heard about is to use other kinds of stemware, ranging from the wide-saucer champagne glasses to — I kid you not — margarita glasses (left). I see no issue from a taste standpoint, though the margarita glass was certainly a surprise. For me, if there is no martini glass available, the champagne glass would be the second choice, with the wine and margarita glasses coming in a far-back third.

Just...no...

And yes. Precisely once I have been served a martini in a tumbler. At the Owl and Thistle in Seattle (right). Fortunately by round two they found a real glass...

But regardless of how it’s served, the martini’s mystique is still something special. No matter what the glassware, it’s always something to be seen and enjoyed, making any evening something fun and little bit more sophisticated.

Just make sure you photograph it on the first round…

"Third Martini"