don't touch the olives...

I used to like a good dirty martini, now I can't drink them.  Though some will dispute that the gin (or vodka) is being polluted by the brine, I enjoy the salty/savoury addition to the cocktail.  But it's hard to get a 'clean' dirty martini.

Bartenders and servers everywhere are sticking their dirty fingers in the olives.  It's not so much about the couple of olives they pull out, it's about what is left behind.  Your bartender touches your ice, your straw, your fruit, why not your olives, right?  It's all about the brine.  Every time someone shoves their dirty bartender's fingers into the olive jar they leave 2 little somethings behind - bacteria & natural oils.  This bacteria/oil combo starts to react with the brine, forming little white things - we'll call them 'fat globules' - and when someone orders a dirty martini these 'fat globules' end up in the drink. Gross.

Unfortunately, this phenomenon is not limited to low grade restaurants.  It's surprising how dirty most olive jars are.  So the next time you have a dirty martini, drink it at home.