Any of these words would describe the spirited and legendary martini.

However, today’s martini has a new twist, and it’s based on the ability of vodka to take on the character of its companions within the glass.

“Gin is aromatic,” said Anthony Maglietta, proprietor of Molly’s On Top, on East Chestnut Street in Lancaster city.
“Vodka is the tasteless, odorless spirit,” he said.
The original martini is gin with vermouth (or not), and called a Gibson when served with an onion. In the last 20 years,European vodkas have come along with lots of infused flavors and more options, said Jared Brown, co-author of “Shaken Not Stirred,” in an e-mail interview.

Although 007-James Bond creator Ian Fleming drank a bottle of gin a day, he used the signature of individuality that’s characteristic of martinis when he created the identity of James Bond, a cosmopolitan dandy of a spy. Bond’s martinis were grain vodka and Lillet Blanc as the vermouth. They were shaken — not stirred — until ice cold, and served with a large slice of lemon peel in a champagne goblet, according Brown.

“Martinis are now fun,” said Todd Frisbie, bartender at Reflections’ Slugger’s martini bar on Oregon Road in Leola. Frisbie’s favorite martini carries a jolt of espresso with a boost of chocolate on a vodka base.

“Who needs Red Bull for energy?” he said.

Frisbie and fellow bartender Lisa Garland garnish martini glasses with such gems as a chocolate spider web on the bottom of the Halloween special, or add grenadine, a heavy red liqueur, to their Upside Down Pineapple Martini. The grenadine drops to the bottom of the glass and looks like a cherry in this sweet, rum-based martini.

“In the past, a martini was pure. Today it’s creative,” Garland said. Each month, she creates a mystery martini special. January welcomed “Hypnotic,” a mild vodka martini with flavors of citron, cranberry and peach. February’s mystery martini depends on passion-fruit infused vodka splashed with pineapple juice.

The Reflections martini is served in three glass containers. The classic glass is placed beside a sidecar glass bearing the drink on a bed of ice.

Molly’s On Top was created by Maglietta on the second floor of Molly’s Pub last year. The nightclub-style space is furnished with black leather couches and modern paintings because, he said, “a martini bar should be like a martini — classy and sexy.”

Maglietta’s favorite martini is very classic. It’s made with vodka or Bombay Sapphire gin, straight up (no vermouth). Not dirty (no olive juice). Stirred, not shaken. Very cold. Little flakes of ice float on the top.
Maglietta doesn’t like his martinis shaken because the air that is introduced makes the drink look cloudy.

The subtle differences behind “stir or shake” are explained by Brown: “Stirring makes a clearer and stronger martini, but takes longer and doesn’t blend it as thoroughly.
“Shaking, on the other hand, chills the drink faster but imparts the air and the tiny chips of ice which tend to cloud the martini. The added air also affects the aldehydes, making the flavor stronger.

“For vodka martini drinkers, this is perfect; however, gin can become overpowering if it is shaken,” Brown said.
“Let’s face it,” he added, “it’s also more fun to shake it.”

The stir-or-shake ritual epitomizes the highly individual — and often dogmatic — preferences that create legends about martinis around the bars of the world.

For all these reasons, both Molly’s and Reflections have a full menu of martini choices as long, or longer than, a wine list. And the bartenders go through a ritual, questioning each customer, asking for individual preferences, including favorite brands of gin or vodka.
No two martinis are exactly alike, said Maglietta. Even the ritual of how the olive is dropped into the glass varies from one bartender to another.

Maglietta puts a flourish on any garnish, be it an olive, an onion, a slice of orange or lime, even a pomegranate seed. If pushed, he will even make an Ivanovitch, which features a pickle.

Exotic olives are the next accoutrement to come down the martini pike, according to Maglietta. If you like, your martini olive might be stuffed with garlic, jalapeno peppers or -- an outrage to the purists -- feta or bleu cheese.

Take it as you like it. Martini expert Brown said, "Above all, remember: the best martini in the world is, and always will be, a matter of opinion."
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