She asks him to name his cocktail concoction after her and he happily obliges. Later on in the book, he meets the beautiful Vesper Lynd, who he falls in love with but turns out to be a double agent. Of course, we all know that he likes his drinks “shaken, not stirred” and he also suggests that the cocktail would be better with a grain-based vodka. He requests for it to be served in a champagne goblet glass and with a large lemon peel garnish.
Based on the original Martini recipe, the Vesper adds an extra dimension, made with three measures of Gordon’s gin, one measure of vodka and half a measure of Kina Lillet, an aromatised wine. It was in Fleming’s first Bond book, Casino Royale, that James Bond gives us very distinct instructions as to how a Vesper should be made. The secret agent is thought to be the first person to introduce the drink to the world, despite being a fictional character. In fact, the Vesper Martini is so intrinsically linked with Ian Fleming’s spy series that it is often referred to as Bond’s Vesper. This classic cocktail was not created by some superstar mixologist in a high-class bar, or adapted from some ancient naval recipe. Tags: classic cocktails, james bond, makemeacocktail, shaken not stirred, vesper cocktail.
