Originally published in 1998. From its contested origins in nineteenth-century California; through its popularity among the smart set of the 1930s, world leaders of the 1940s, and the men in the gray flannel suits of the 1950s; to its resurgence among today's retro-hipsters: Lowell Edmunds traces the history and cultural significance of the cocktail H. L. Mencken called "the only American invention as perfect as a sonnet."

"Making a martini speaks to my senses - the sound of ice being dropped into a stainless-steel shaker and the almost brash sound of shaking the chosen concoction fills me with anticipation. The first moment that the elixir, with its tiny ice chips and layers of flavor, touches my lips - perfection. Make your cocktail adventure your own. Try a few new things and enjoy your old favorites. Only you know what you love. I hope one of my recipes makes it into your favorites list!" About the Author: Shirley Mower-Fenoff is a self-taught mixologist, using many ingredients grown on her own property in northern New Hampshire. She uses her creative and curious mind along with her frugal New England tendencies to make many of the recipes contained in this book. She is a gardener, a knitter, owner/creator of Violet Forrest body care products, silversmith, mom, grandma and when she's not wearing her Muck boots and blue jeans, a high-heeled wearing banker.

The martini is without a doubt the king of cocktails—an icon in modern society as well as in the cocktail culture worldwide. When Ian Fleming wrote the first vodka martini into literature (à la James Bond), the bar scene exploded with countless drink possibilities. From chocolate martinis to lemon drop martinis, cosmopolitans to appletinis, this is the essential new guide to all the many variations on one classic drink.