Vesper Martini

The era of the three-martini lunch has come and gone.  Blame Kennedy, blame Carter, but really, blame yourselves for not being able to handle three delicious glasses of ambrosia.  (For the record, I'm on the floor after one.)

Like the Old Fashioned, the Martini (nee Martinez) is one of those classic cocktails that has been around since the dawn of time (or circa 1850) and keeps getting better with age.

Whatever your poison there is a flavor for you:

sweet (Cosmos), 

salty (Dirty), 

chocolaty (blegh), 

or somewhere in between (stay tuned).

Bottom line--and bottoms-up--there are as many ways and opinions on how to make a martini as there are Baldwin brothers.  However, when talking about the martini there is one, culturally obvious person to start with:Bond. James Bond.

In the novel Casino Royale, Fleming's Bond orders a Vesper Martini and conveniently lists the recipe as:

2 measures Gin

1 measure Vodka

1/2 measure Lillet

Twist of Lemon

Now before you say "Shaken, not stirred" I'm here to tell you that Bond is wrong--and I say that not just because I come down on the other side in the Indiana Jones vs. James Bond debate.

Let's examine the players: Gin, aka botanically flavored vodka, can be bruised by the ice prematurely releasing the subtle flavors and aromas that make gin, well, gin and not just vodka.  It's the same with Lillet, which is a concoction of wine and citrus botanicals--too much shaking means the flavors will end up in the shaker and not in your mouth.

You want to gently swirl the ingredients like so:

But we're getting ahead of ourselves.  Begin by gathering the cast of characters:

Let's start with the lemon--cut off a peel and save that for the garnish.

Move the ice into the shaker, hopefully not too much water has melted but if so dump it out.  Use the remainder of the lemon to wipe down the inside of the glass, we're looking for a skim coat of lemon juice and oils to help lift up the liquors.

Now let's return to the booze, add: 2 measures (shot, ounces, centiliters, unit of measure is up to you) of gin,  1 measure of vodka, and 1/2 measure of the lillet.

Swirl the ingredients as before.

Add the lemon peel, pour into glass and serve (then have three more!).