Bond Vesper Martini Recipe

Freelance writer and cocktail book author Colleen Graham is a seasoned mixologist who loves sharing her knowledge of spirits and passion for preparing drinks.

Tom wears many cocktail hats. He is a professional bartender, bar owner, recipe creator, and drink writer, though he prefers the title obsessive cocktail nerd.

Every James Bond fan knows this recipe as the first martini that Bond ordered in Ian Fleming's 1953 book, Casino Royale (or the 2006 movie). Named after the seductive double agent Vesper Lynd, it is possibly the most famous drink order in history and extremely precise. Recreating the Vesper martini at home is easy, but it also requires interpretation.

Make Your Own Vesper Martini Ala James Bond

This drink is purely fictional. It was created by the author in his first book about the now-famous British Secret Intelligence Service agent and has also become known as the James Bond martini. As any devotee of the books or movies knows, Bond is very fond of fine cocktails, and this was certainly not the last drink in the series. In fact, the Vesper received just that single mention, and the vodka and gin martinis were served far more often as the series progressed.

The Vesper martini is interesting because it combines gin and vodka with Kina Lillet (commonly substituted with Lillet Blanc or dry vermouth). It's a very potent mix, and Fleming (er, Bond) is very particular about two ingredients: Kina Lillet is no longer available, and the gin has changed significantly since the '50s, so the original formula requires adaptation.

The Vesper is a fascinating cocktail. Compared to the gin martini, it has a slightly sweet, bitter taste contributed by Lillet, while the vodka tames the gin's botanicals. It's a drink that both gin and vodka drinkers can appreciate and fun to tweak to your personal taste.

Vesper Dry Martini Cocktail Recipe

Regardless of the mystique surrounding it, the Vesper is a darn good cocktail. Its composition is unlike other martini variations as it combines gin and vodka. Seems arbitrary, but it works quite well. The vodka tempers the botanicals in the gin and gives the cocktail a pleasant levity. —Tom Macy

The recipe is easy enough, though many people prefer to stir it. The shake may actually be a good thing because it ensures extra dilution in this stiff drink.

It's said that vodka in the '50s was often bottled at 100 proof and that Gordon's was 94 proof at the time (it's since been reformulated). Factoring those numbers in, the Vesper could easily be a 39 percent ABV (78 proof) cocktail. That's equivalent to a straight shot of most vodkas on the market today. It's also worth noting that this recipe creates a nearly 5-ounce drink with proper dilution, which is almost double the average alcohol-only martini.

How To Make A Vesper Martini Fit For James Bond

Anytime there's a debate over shaking versus stirring cocktails, one can't help but think of Bond's famous line, shaken, not stirred. It first appeared in Fleming's 1956 novel, Diamonds Are Forever. Bond drank many gin and vodka martinis throughout the books, and shaken cocktails seemed to be his preference. However, the general bartending rule is to stir liquor-only cocktails to avoid too much dilution.

Here's how to make the Vesper according to Ian Fleming and James Bond: Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon-peel. Got it? (​Casino Royale, Chapter 7.)

) that Bond speaks of is a French aromatized wine that is no longer produced. It included quinine, which is also used in tonic water and contributes a bitter taste. Lillet Blanc replaced Kina Lillet, and it also originally included quinine, but that ingredient was dropped in the 1980s. Today's Lillet Blanc is softer and similar to dry vermouth(a fortified wine), only noticeably sweeter without the bitterness.

How To Make The Vesper Martini From James Bond's Casino Royale

The Gordon's Gin available in the U.S. today is different than that found in the United Kingdom. Neither is the same Gordon's that Fleming knew because the recipe and strength have changed. While Gordon's is a good everyday gin, there are now plenty of better options to choose from. Nearly any top-shelf gin with a bold botanical profile will make a nice Vesper. Many people prefer Tanqueray or Beefeater, though some like the fruitier Plymouth Gin. As for the vodka, don't worry about the strength, and pour your favorite premium vodka.

*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2, 000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

I don't like this at all. It's not the worst. Sure, this will do. I'm a fan—would recommend. Amazing! I love it! Thanks for your rating!

The Best Vodka And Gin Pairings For Your Vesper Cocktail

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The Vesper, also known as the Vesper Martini, was invented by author Ian Fleming for his iconic British secret agent, James Bond. The drink first appeared in Fleming's

When Bond orders his signature drink from the bartender, he provides strict instructions, which leaves little ambiguity in how to prepare the cocktail: “A dry martini. One. Three measures of Gordon’s, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it’s ice-cold, then add a large thin slice of lemon peel.”

Vesper Cocktail Recipe

While a general bartending rule of thumb is to always stir a spirit-only cocktail like a Martini, there's an argument to be made in support of (the now-iconic) shaking of a Vesper. Given that the drink contains four ounces of , along with an extra half-ounce of Lillet, the drink is functionally a double. In order to make a palatable drink, the added water dilution from shaking can be preferable to that achieved by stirring.

It may also serve a broader literary purpose of portraying Bond as a hard-drinking secret agent who chose to take his drinks exceedingly strong and shaken until they were so cold that the alcohol couldn't be felt as it went down.

Bond claims that, when he’s concentrating, he never has more than one drink before dinner. But he likes that one drink to be very large. It’s easy to appreciate such a loophole. But if you want a less boozy drink, you can dial back the volume while keeping the proportions intact.

Taste Ian Fleming's True Vesper Martini Recipe From Casino Royale

I don't like this at all. It's not the worst. Sure, this will do. I'm a fan—would recommend. Amazing! I love it! Thanks for your rating!

When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site.James Bond displayed prowess in many disciplines. Driving gadget-laden Aston Martins! Sassing M! Wearing the hell out of a suit! But that prowess all but abandoned him where a Vesper crossed his path—the woman he loved, who betrayed him, and the drink he invented in her memory, which lives on to confuse us all.

Bond made the Vesper a cocktail known the world over; that's the power of a strong personal brand. But had Bond (or rather, author Ian Fleming) not been its creator, it likely would not have stood a chance on its own. The Vesper, adjacent to a proper martini but nowhere near as balanced, has potency going for it, sure. The ratios of gin, vodka, and Lillet (a French aperitif used as a vermouth substitute) deserves to be questioned, but we won't tamper with Bond's recipe. Where we will go rogue is the Vesper's construction. As you and everyone else in the galaxy knows, Bond ordered martinis shaken, not stirred, but that's no way to get one bone-chillingly cold. We'd have you stir, not shake. Like this:

The Best Vesper Martini Cocktail Recipe, According To Experts

, Bond ordered the following yet-unnamed cocktail from a bartender: Three measures of Gordon's, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it's ice-cold, then add a large, thin slice of lemon peel. Got it? His directions were crystal clear,