Where in the world was the famous dry martini created and by whom?

Sofie

The inventor of the dry martini is lost in history's haze. Some romantic gin-and-vermouth scholars say it was St. Martin of Tours, patron of tosspots. Others hold that a tipsy barkeep at San Francisco's Palace Hotel happened on the formula by accident before World War I. The Italian vermouth company, Martini & Rossi, is sometimes credited with first honors, and an 1862 bartender's manual describes a "martinez" which contains the basic ingredient but adds maraschino and bitters. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,869279,00.html May 22 07, 3:54 PM

lanfranco

And here I thought St. Martin just took care of soldiers and beggars. But no, if you're a little too fond of martinis (or any other spirits), you can pray to him, too: http://www.catholic-forum.com/saints/saintm07.htm May 22 07, 4:32 PM

lanfranco

Here's an even more extensive, though apparently unverified, discussion of the history of the martini: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martini_%28cocktail%29 May 22 07, 4:33 PM