Illustration by Edel Rodriguez.

• Jean-luc le dû won every major sommelier award during his ten years at Daniel. He’s also an amateur cocktail enthusiast. On a recent Tuesday night, Le Dû tested the house dry martini at five of New York’s best cocktail bars.

• Fifth Place

• Employees Only

  510 Hudson St., 212-242-3021

  Le Dû was handed a dry Beefeater martini with lemon�the bartender didn’t ask his preference. The lemon overwhelmed the whole sense of the drink, Le Dû said. �You could barely smell the gin.� Beefeater is �a good big brand,� but there was �way too much� vermouth in this martini, and that made it �too smooth,� Le Dû said. The rounded vintage cocktail glass was �much too big�it’s a get-me-drunk glass,� tutted Le Dû.

• Fourth Place

• Angel's Share

  8 Stuyvesant St., 212-777-5415

  Le Dû was served a Tanqueray martini, poured at the table in a chilled glass with three olives. The drink immediately scored points for presentation. And at first, Le Dû said, �We have a contender�the taste is smooth, and there’s almost a nutty flavor that none of the other drinks have.� But after a few more mouthfuls, he changed his mind. �I really like the nose, but it has a harsh, inelegant finish�like drinking moonshine,� he said. �It’s mixed very well, but the gin is bad.�

• Third Place

• Pegu Club

  77 W. Houston St., 212-473-7348

  Here, the martini was made from Hendrick’s gin and served in vintage cocktail glasses, with a little extra of the drink on the side. �This is the most floral,� Le Dû said. �You would swear there was lemon peel in it.� (That’s because Hendrick’s has cucumber infusions.) This was the driest, sharpest martini, said Le Dû. �The ratio of vermouth to gin is off.� Still the small, tender olives were the best Le Dû tasted, and they brought out the gin’s brininess.

• Second Place

• The King Cole Bar in the St. Regis Hotel

  2 E. 55th St., 212-339-6721

  Another Beefeater martini, served in a traditional glass. �This is a perfectly mixed drink,� said Le Dû. �It’s smooth, it’s well made, you get the aromas of the juniper berries coming out.� There was a certain harshness on the palate, Le Dû said. �But it still tastes like a true martini.�

• Winner

• Milk & Honey

  Reservations only through a secret phone number

  Served with Plymouth gin and extra olives on the side. �I like the nose on this right away,� exclaimed Le Dû. �The aromas of gin are there, but they’re subdued. You get a scent of the olive, but it’s not overwhelming.� And the taste confirmed his first impression: �This is the perfect amount of vermouth. You get the sharpness of the gin, but it’s slightly mellowed. This is a martini! It’s true, it’s pungent.�

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