So This Is Christmas

Merry Christmas is such an infectious feeling I like to feel that way all year around.

So if you are visiting just before Christmas, just after Christmas or even here on Christmas day I am sure you will find something of interest for you and in the spirit of Christmas.

It may be said that Christmas is no longer a celebration but this must be spoken by people that have never had trouble closing their eyes on Christmas Eve in an expectation of what maybe left for them on the carpet under the tree.

I continue to look forward to the surprise on my Grandchild's faces to this day at Christmas events.

Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas

Sunday, July 3, 2011

We Love Martinis But What's With The Olive?

By Kate L. Romano


The Olive is a species of a small tree, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean, as well as northern Iran, at the south end of the Caspian Sea. The olive is very important in the Mediterranean countries, where it is used for the production of olive oil. Have you ever thought about the history of olives in martini?

Martini is made by mixing unequal portions of gin and dry vermouth. The ingredients are mixed in a ratio of somewhere between 2:1 and 15:1. The drink is served chilled, garnished with either a green olive or a lemon twist. Nowadays this is one of the most famous cocktails in the world. This cocktail is associated with nightlife and going out with friends. There are many variations such as Dirty Martini, Chocolate Martini, Gibson Martini etc.

In the USA and Canada eggnog is a popular New Year Eve's drink. It's a sweet beverage, consisting of beaten eggs, milk, sugar, cream and sometimes alcohol. The alcohol, used to make eggnog is traditionally brandy, rum or whiskey, but martini lovers invented Eggnog Martini - a new custom for the winter holidays. In Eggnog Martini there are no olives like in the classic one. It is drunk instead of the traditional eggnog and it's made with rum, vodka, eggnog, syrup and cinnamon.

It would be nice if we knew more about the history of olives in martini. In the second half of the 19th century, the first Martini cocktails were garnished with a cherry. Later, the Dry Martini appeared and it included an olive. The main benefit is that olives add salt to your cocktail drink. This is because olives used in cocktails are normally preserved in sea water.

Before considering the history of olives in martini, we need to comprehend why it has got this name- a cocktail. There are lots of different stories, but no one knows the right answer to our question. Some people think it's because of the different ingredients of the drink, which symbolize the variety of colors in the beautiful bird tail. Others think that cocktails got their name, because they were originally morning drinks and people connected them with the birds, which were also a symbol of the morn.

Martini is also popular in literature and American film industry. The movie and book character James Bond is famous for his favorite "shaken" Martini. Many famous people such as Winston Churchill, Ernest Hemingway, Truman Capote and U.S. President Roosevelt were known to prefer Martini.

We do not know how people started to make this cocktail, but we know it's delightful! Although there are various recipes for it, the standard Martini contains mainly gin and dry vermouth. The recipes, which are supposed to be among the first Martini preparation instructions, don't have anything to do with the one that exists nowadays. The most common garnish is the olive, but in some cases lemon twist or cocktail onions are also used to decorate the beverage.

No woman would refuse to have one and it shows high class when a gentleman drinks Martini. There are hundreds of Martini recipes around the world and every one of them is unique in its own way. But whatever you chose, you won't regret it, because with every sip of Martini, you'll feel the exquisite pleasure of this elegant drink.




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