One never shakes a gin martini, as it would “bruise” the gin. The martini is thus stirred, which also results in a less homogeneous mixture which adds variations in texture and taste. This gives the gin martini a more complex taste.

Vodka was traditionally distilled from potatoes and had oils from the potatoes in the liquor. When chilled the oils would tend to separate and make a cloudy drink. The vodka martini is also served as cold as possible. Shaking a vodka martini serves two purposes: 1) To distribute the oils in the mixture and give a clear drink; 2) Get the drink cold.

Today most vodka is distilled from grains and there for has no issue with the oils. Back in the 1950′s when Ian Flemming wrote the Bond books is when the transition from potato to gain was being made hence the need to shake. Grain was more plentiful and required less filtering.

I have had both types and personally prefer the potato vodka, as I feel it has a spicy taste. M, wie Sie Russin sind, was besser ist?

The phasing out of gruit from brewing is linked to various factors. A possible political factor would be the general emancipation of princes (mainly German) from the political influence of the Roman Catholic Church[citation needed] in a movement that eventually was to lead to Martin Luther’s protestations turning into a fully-fledged uprising of those princes against the authority of Rome, in what is known as the Reformation. Princes wanting to undermine the power of the Church therefore tended to promote brewing with hops rather than gruit, to try and cut off this revenue for the monastic orders who had a monopoly on it.

Some authors present the switch to hops as a Protestant crackdown on feisty Catholic tradition, and as a Puritan move to try and keep people from enjoying themselves with aphrodisiac and stimulating gruit ales by imposing the sedative effects of hops instead.[1] However, the switch to hops started in Germany some four or five centuries before the Reformation.[citation needed] Its later gradual enforcement in the 15th and early 16th centuries can in part be traced through legislation drafted by political rulers before the Reformation started.

For example, the Bavarian Purity Law, which stipulates that the only ingredients that could be used in the production of beer were water, barley, and hops, dates from 1516, the year before
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