Buzz Bite II

International Martini Day

International Martini Day on June

19 celebrates the cocktail in all its forms. The martini is said to have been created in the U.S. in the late 1800s when vermouth, a fortified French wine, hit the scene as a cocktail mixer.

The classic is made with gin (not vodka) and a hint of dry vermouth, stirred quickly through ice, poured into a chilled glass, and garnished with a lemon twist or olives. Other iterations include the popular vodka martini; the dirty martini with its cloudy olive brine; and the Gibson, or classic martini, garnished only with a cocktail onion. For those with a sweeter palate, of course, there are also the fruitier versions like the cosmopolitan, lycheetini, cucumber martini and appletini.

—Christie Galeano-DeMott