Heineken-swigging James Bond doesn’t go down well with fans
Nothing but the best — in aristocrat surrounds, as with this lounge in Dukes London, and luxury brands — for Bond. After the next film, though, it could be the Heineken brewery: Sacrilege. — Picture courtesy of Dukes LondonLONDON, July 9 — The fact that James Bond will be reaching for a bottle of Heineken beer instead of his signature martini in the next big-budget film “Skyfall” has created quite a stir, and a shake for that matter, among fans who consider the move a sacrilegious sell-out.
As the franchise celebrates the 50th anniversary of the first Bond movie release this year, the next instalment, directed by Sam Mendes, has already taken flak for swapping 007’s iconic drink of choice — the martini, “shaken, not stirred” — for Dutch beer brand Heineken.
When the move was announced earlier this spring, fans denounced the product placement as being at complete odds with Bond lore: a man who consumes nothing but the best in luxury brands.
Where some Tweeps consider the move reason enough to boycott “Skyfall”, others have called it a sign of the end of times.
“The world must be coming to an end if James Bond is now drinking Heineken,” agrees Alessandro Palazzi, bartender at Dukes bar in London. “The fact that James Bond is drinking beer is awful.”
Dukes Bar is the former watering hole of Bond creator Sir Ian Fleming, and where he was reportedly to have coined the phrase, “shaken, not stirred”, referring to how Bond would have his martini mixed.
“For Bond fans, it will create a big controversy,” said Palazzi. “People are already talking about it.”
Palazzi is a good gauge on the pulse of Bond fans, as the bar is a pilgrimage site for 007 fans from around the world. And though he disapproves of the move, Palazzi said he understands the reasons for putting a mainstream, inexpensive beer into the hands of the most famous British Secret Service agent, all US$45 million (RM141.9 million) of them.
Echoing the words of Bond star Daniel Craig, Palazzi pointed out that Bond movies were expensive to make, especially as fans have come to expect bigger and better with every new instalment.
But if it were up to Palazzi — and martinis were no longer an option — he would hand the handsome British spy retro cocktails such as a Manhattan or Old-Fashioned, drinks that, like Bond, are classics, he said. — Relaxnews
* Dukes, the pilgrimage site
* How to make a martini worthy of James Bond
