Why James Bond’s Vesper Is the Booziest Martini Around

The Vesper is a type of Martini that is made with gin, vodka, and aromatized wine. The spirit-forward cocktail is shaken with ice, strained into a coupe glass, and garnished with a lemon twist.

Like a Dirty Martini, 50/50, or Wet Martini, the Vesper is considered another drink in the broader Martini category. Unlike many Martinis, though, the Vesper opts for a different type of aromatized wine than standard vermouth. The cocktail is quite strong (employing a ratio of 8:1 spirit to aperitif) and the recipe yields a cocktail with greater volume than most Martinis. In fact, after the dilution caused by shaking with ice, the drink measures around 5 ounces and some might consider it a “double.”

The Vesper was invented by James Bond in author Ian Fleming’s 1953 book, Casino Royale, the first book of many to feature the iconic character. In it, Bond orders a martini made with mostly gin, a little vodka, and Kina Lillet, Bond instructs the bartender to shake the cocktail until ice-cold and garnish with lemon peel. Bond originally calls the drink the “special martini” then changes it to “Vesper” after falling for the story’s femme fatale, Vesper Lynd (Bond fans will know how that duo turned out).

Kina Lillet vs. Lillet Blanc vs. Cocchi Americano

Kina Lillet is an earlier formulation of what is now known as Lillet Blanc, a French aromatized wine with a floral and citrusy flavor profile. Lillet’s first iteration, Kina Lillet was invented in the last 19th century and remained the formula for the aperitif through the 1980s. In 1986 the recipe yielded to consumer interest in sweeter, more subtle flavors and the amount of quinine used in the wine was reduced significantly.

Quinine is an ingredient derived from the bark of the cinchona tree native to western South America. The compound has been used for medicinal purposes by the indigenous populations of the region for centuries. But, in the 15th century with the European colonization of parts of South America, quinine became a powerful and common ingredient used for the treatment of malaria. Quinine has an intensely bitter flavor profile and was mixed with sugar, wine, and other ingredients to temper the flavor (it’s the primary flavoring for tonic water as well). Nowadays, quinine is used primarily as a flavoring agent since alternative treatments for malaria have developed.

The higher proportion of quinine in Kina Lillet gave the Vesper a subtle backbone of bitterness which helped balance the boozy kick of the gin and vodka. The Lillet Blanc sold today has a sweeter, more citrus-forward flavor profile which lacks the oomph of Kina Lillet. Because of this, bartenders and Vesper-aficionados often use Cocchi Americano, an Italian aromatized wine flavored with quinine to emulate Kina Lillet’s signature bitterness.

Why the Vesper works

The Vesper Martini is not for the faint of heart: It’s a big drink that packs a seriously boozy wallop. Since the Vesper is shaken, not stirred (like most Martinis) the drink has a bit of extra water comparatively which helps temper the high-octane spirits.

Gin offers herbaceous notes which blend well with the somewhat medicinal notes present in the quinine-flavored aperitif. Vodka is a flavorless ingredient which simple adds a bit of extra fortification to this drink and ups the volume — should Bond have just used only gin for his Vesper, the flavors in the spirit may have overwhelmed the Kina Lillet.

A garnish of a lemon twist adds a pop of freshness and some added bitterness from the pith as well.