Consuming a Vesper - Advice please!!
Brosnan_fan
Sydney, AustraliaPosts: 521MI6 Agent
So the holidays are just around the corner, and I thought it was high time I finally tried out James Bond's famed cocktail of choice. -{ However, as a total stranger to this drink, I felt it best to seek advice from the more experienced among you.
What are your recommendations for the measurements of gin, vodka and vermouth to use? I wish to make my first experience as hangover-free as possible.
What are your recommendations for the measurements of gin, vodka and vermouth to use? I wish to make my first experience as hangover-free as possible.
"Well, he certainly left with his tails between his legs."
Comments
Here is the recipe:
3 oz Gin
1 oz Vodka
0.5 oz Lillet Blanc
That's a pretty stiff drink, so you might want to half the measurements. Also, a dash of bitters is a wise addition.
Here's a good article about making a Vesper:
http://www.esquire.com/features/ESQ1106DRINKS_84
For what it's worth, I find the Vesper a bit overrated. I prefer more traditional Martinis. The ones I make at home are inspired by a recipe from Mr. Martini's excellent "Behind the Bar Show." Specifically...
2 oz. gin (I like good old-fashioned Beefeater)
0.5 oz dry vermouth (Noilly Prat, the original dry vermouth)
a dash of orange bitters
Shaken over ice, served in a chilled cocktail glass with a twist of lemon
The orange bitters really takes the Martini over the edge. It's not something I would have thought of, and I credit Mr. Martini with this valuable addition.
A Gent in Training.... A blog about my continuing efforts to be improve myself, be a better person, and lead a good life. It incorporates such far flung topics as fitness, self defense, music, style, food and drink, and personal philosophy.
Agent In Training
Well said!
I would also like to share an experience I had a couple of days ago: I was at a X-mass lunch at a restaurant here in Helsinki and decided start of with a Martini. I ordered one from the waiter, and was promptly served; it tasted very, very strange. I asked the waiter what kind of Vermouth they had used? "Martini bianco, we always use it for martinis!" She answered quite surprised. I told her to take it away and to bring me a beer instead. 8-)
-Mr Arlington Beech
I have found (internet searching) that Concchi Americano is apparantlly a very good substitie for the original formulation of Kina Lillet.
The rub for me is that I am in Canada and I can not locate either product. (lillet Blanc or Cocchi Americano)
Has anyone made a Vesper using Cocchi Americano??
I am considering making the 8-10 hour road trip to cross the border into the US and pick a bottle of Cocchi Am. ( that is after having it drop shipped to a border portal in North Dakota from New York or California)
Should I gas up and go or not waste my time?
3 measures Berry Bros & Rudd No. 3 London Dry Gin
1 measure Potocki vodka
1 measure Lillet Blanc
2 drops of Angostura Bitters to line the chilled glass (this helps replicate the original flavour of Kina Lillet)
Whether this is indeed similar to Fleming's favourite tipple I don't know, but what I can tell you is that it's both very strong and very tasty and well worth the try!
http://www.thedrinkshop.com/products/nlpdetail.php?prodid=1810
I might try martini bianco, but i think it would be missing the orange edge and bitterness that the original Kina Lillet apparantly had. MAybe I will grab a bottle later and infuse it with some orange peel and give that a go.
Visited Duke's to try a Vesper just after Skyfall came out. As The Domino Effect said it is well worth a try just don't drive or smoke immediately afterwards!
Ugghhhh.... I hate to disagree with you here, but I have to.
I have never, ever had a martini made from Martini Bianco before. And I drink a lot of Martinis. I am a Bond and Mad Men fan, so naturally I have to. Martini Extra Dry which has only 25g sugar/l works perfectly, Martini Bianco is a sweet vermouth it has 160g sugar / l and it absolutely drowns the taste of fine vodka or makes a mess of the taste of fine gin. When I make a Martini at home, I use Stoli for vodka and Noilly Prat (35g sugar/l) for vermouth.
Bianco works perfectly on the rocks with couple of lime wedges, with soda or ice cold as it is. Don't get me wrong, I like Martini Bianco, I just like my Martinis classic and as dry as German humor!
-{
-Mr Arlington Beech
3 measures Gordons
1 measure Stolichnaya Vodka
1/2 measure Martini Bianco
Shaken until ice cold
and served with a long strip of lemon peel. -{
It was actually quite tasty
I will still try infusing some of the Martini Bianco with orange peel and give it another go.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/LILLET-Blanc-French-Vermouth-Bottle/dp/B004EAMAKA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1359406276&sr=8-1
Found one bottle of Lillet on the shelf. $18.00. Snagged it. Bought a bottle of Gordon's Gin. Already had Russian Shot vodka in my freezer.
On the way home, went to the local Albertsons and got a couple of lemons. Called my wife to put a martini glass in the freezer for me.
So, got home, made the Apple Martini for my wife, and FINALLY made a Vesper. I have been used to using dry vermouth all these years, so was anxious to use the Lillet AT LAST.
I REALLY enjoyed it. Didn't feel sick like I drank too much afterwards. Usually a late evening martini makes me feel ill through the night, but it was worth the 26 year wait.
The Lillet gave it a great flavor and smoothed everything out. Nothing bitter about it, no bad aftertaste, although I used 2 shots of gin, rather than 3, in error... I may have to do it right today. I will report afterwards!
3 measures Gordons
1 measure Stolichnaya Vodka
1/2 measure Lillet Blanc
I'm aware that I might not be experiencing an authentic Vesper (nearly impossible to do so anyway), but it was still a delightfully strong drink that I plan on tinkering with with various substitutes and auditions.
http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2011/02/what-is-cocchi-aperitivo-americano-aperitif-cocktails-drinks.html
A Gent in Training.... A blog about my continuing efforts to be improve myself, be a better person, and lead a good life. It incorporates such far flung topics as fitness, self defense, music, style, food and drink, and personal philosophy.
Agent In Training
I sometimes frequent the Refuel Bar at the Soho Hotel on Dean Street. Their Vespers are pretty good, but my friends have limited me to just two else I start running round with my shirt off, screaming like a half wit claiming to be Bond himself. After a fourth, I calm down but only because I am crying like a baby and attempting to explain to complete strangers that I am just like Bond because I too lost the love of my life last year...not because he killed himself but because he was a lying cheating dirty ba***rd. It is at this point that I am poured into a black cab and whisked back to Vauxhall!!
Even better that the Refuel Vesper has got to be the ones they serve up at the cocktail bar in the basement at The Dorchester on Park Lane. Although not the classic CR recipe (they use orange peel rather than lemon), the taste is a sensation and a little less sharp than the original.
Any fans in London who fancy a night on the Vespers sometime, please do drop me an email and let's hook up!
Funnily another waitress pinned me out, "is that the James Bond martini"?! I had to admit to it and we got a good chuckle and some convo about favorite Bond movies. -{
No tears or tops off ???
That's disappointing....
asking for one in a posh hotel, The glass had so many little unbrellas, and
other bits hanging off it. The only thing Missing was a Sparkler.
I felt like Del Boy.
( I guess I must of annoyed the barman )
One advice for consuming a Vesper, take a cab home! -{
I actually just ordered two bottles of the Cocchi Aperitivo Americano as it is supposed to be as close as you can get to Kina Lillet, so as soon as I get it (should be Friday) I'll shake up a vesper and let you guys know how it goes down.
"How did he die" "Your contact, not well" ~ DC in CR
"How did he die" "Your contact, not well" ~ DC in CR
"How did he die" "Your contact, not well" ~ DC in CR