Product placement… an incredibly powerful component of Hollywood films that has, in many cases, permanently cemented certain products into our very psyche. Take for example the Martini, a cocktail that was bastardized, yet immortalized by perhaps filmdoms greatest icon, James Bond. In countless movies, we are led to believe that Mr Bond’s cocktail of choice is the Vodka Martini, shaken, not stirred. Legions of young men, striving for the embodied cool of James Bond struck out in search of what they thought was the perfect Martini. It’s criminal how wrong they could be… In fact, Mr Bond’s cocktail of choice, which was referenced in the first novel by Ian Flemming, Casino Royale was The Vesper. Not quite a Martini, but instead a cocktail of incredible balance – refreshing, yet with a polished elegance that speaks to the deep mahogany of a private club bar, laden with the rich aroma of fine leather and Cuban tobacco. Heading into a weekend fraught with panic (ala Hurrican Irene), The Vesper is a pefect stress reliever…

The Vesper

3oz. London Dry Gin

1oz. Vodka

1oz. Lillet Blanc

Shake with crushed ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass, garnish with a twist of lemon.

(Originally posted on Facebook: August 25, 2011)