In her book The Martini, author Alice Lascelles chronicles the classic cocktail's journey from the 1880s to today through 60 iterations. Naturally, the Obituary Martini, an absinthe-laced New Orleans creation, gets a shoutout. The garnish is key, though. "A skewer of salty black olives is the perfect antidote to the absinthe’s piercing sweetness," writes Lascelles.