here's no black magic involved in making the perfect Martini. You have to remember that personal taste, more than mixing skills are what will determine what is the perfect Martini. Your perfect Martini might only have a drop of extra-dry vermouth with shaken gin, but the next person's perfect Martini might have a 50/50 mix of gin and sweet vermouth stirred, not shaken. If you are mixing for people other than yourself - mix the Martini as they want it, which is not always how you think it should be done. So here are some of the tips and tricks that you may eventually appreciate:

1.Use the freshest, cleanest ice possible. Don't use ice that has been living in your freezer for months. Make sure that your ice-cube trays are clean and if you must store your ice, do so in a tightly-sealed container.

2.Make everything as cold as possible. In my opinion, there is nothing worse than a warm Martini. Keep your glasses and even your shaker in the freezer until you are ready to begin.
3.Use clean "tools". Don't use grimy shot-classes and shakers. Rinse your shaker thoroughly before you begin each time unless you want the residue of you last Martini to come back and haunt you.

4.Stay away from anything but glass and stainless steel. Aluminum and plastic shakers can horribly flavour your drinks. It is well worth it to spend the extra cash and get nice equipment to start with.

5.Be careful when shaking. As fun as it is to shake your Martini for 10 minutes, you will just end up diluting your drink. If you don't want to water-down your drink, shake gently. If you need to dilute with water, and you don't mind a bit of ice and cloudiness in your drink, shake vigorously.

6.Buy the best ingredients that you can afford. A $70 bottle of scotch really does taste better than a $40 bottle. Spend the extra cash if you can manage it.

7.If you are using olives as garnish, I would recommend rinsing them under water just before you put them into the Martini. This prevents excess oily olive juice from polluting your drink. Fresh olives are also very important. I find that olives that have been sitting for a while ruin a drink. If, like me, you think olives are too much work, try a lemon twist.

One final tip to remember: Pay close attention to the tiny details and the big problems will usually take care of themselves!

The MartiniBoys have compiled the hottest Martini recipes for your drinking pleasure. Try them out, and, when you do find one that suits you perfectly, don't stop there. Keep going! The perfect Martini is out still out there even when you think you already have it. Let's get to it! – S.W.