The five best Martini glasses

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The glass is a crucial consideration in any Martini – as important as the choice of vermouth or gin. How it looks, how it feels in your hand or as it touches your lips, can dramatically alter the character of the drink.

The glass most of us associate with the Martini is, of course, the Y-shaped one – a deco-era motif that’s been patterned out round the world in countless neon bar signs. A curvaceous coupe can also look very elegant, as well as being lovely to hold. (It’s often claimed the coupe was modelled on the breasts of Marie Antoinette, but sadly this is a myth.) The 1980s Nick & Nora, which is named after Nick and Nora Charles, the Martini-swigging sleuths in the post-Prohibition novel and film The Thin Man, is another classic design – its slightly more upright, wine glass form is great for cocktails of all kinds.

Richard Brendon Classic Martini Glass, £75 for two © Laura Edwards

The size of the glass is also very important. Most cocktail glasses these days are far too big, meaning you’re completely smashed and your Martini’s all warm before you’re halfway down the drink. The earliest cocktail glasses, by contrast, held 75-90ml or just a few sips. I’ve seen pictures of Ernest Hemingway drinking Martinis not much bigger than a thimble.

So my advice for Martinis is: keep them icy and small. That first, electrifying sip is usually the best one, after all. A 150ml glass is perfect. Or even smaller if you can. Vintage liqueur glasses are great for cocktails that are really diminutive.

Whichever type of glass you go for, give it a blast it the freezer first. And then hold by the stem so your little, hot hand doesn’t warm your Martini up.

The Martini: The Ultimate Guide to a Cocktail Icon by Alice Lascelles is published by Quadrille at £18.99

Five to buy

Urban Bar 15cl Retro Coupette

Perfectly proportioned, party-proof and a snip at £8.50. The Martini glass I use most often. £8.50, urbanbar.com

Richard Brendon Classic Martini Glass

A brand seen at the Bar at the Connaught and many other top cocktail joints. This glass offers a five-star drinking experience. £75 for a pair, richardbrendon.com

Chesterfield Atomic Design Glasses