Where to sip on the James Bond Martini
Casino Royale consists of three measures of ice-cold Gordon’s gin, 1 measure of vodka, 1/2 measure of quinine-based Kina Lillet (the brand no longer exists so is usually replaced by dry vermouth or Lillet Blanc), shaken and served in a goblet with a thin slice of lemon peel. Over time, the original Vesper Martini was replaced in the Bond movies by the secret agent’s new preference, the vodka Martini. Historically, the Martini has seen many passionate advocates, from Franklin D.
Roosevelt to Ernest Hemingway to Winston Churchill. Did any frequent Dukes? Are there modern-day celebrities who have visited incognito? “We deliberately do not share that as it is the anonymity of not being spoken about that brings people back time and time again," the Dukes’ marketing team informs me. The buzz is that it remains the haunt of fashion and movie superstars and rockstars.
Many cocktails boast Fleming-esque names—Le Chiffre, Odd Job, Tiger Tanaka, Goldeneye, Miss Moneypenny. Dukes’ version of the Vesper, one of its highest-selling drinks, features Potocki vodka (a nod to the Polish female spy Vesper Lynd is allegedly modelled on) combined with the much-awarded London Dry No 3 gin—a gin with a high alcohol content, making the cocktail far more potent—plus a dash of angostura bitters and a spray of amber vermouth from London’s Sacred distillery. It is finished with a sliver of orange rind from Sevilla, shaved off the fruit tableside and swirled into the glass.
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