How to make a martini worthy of James Bond
LONDON, July 9 — You could call Alessandro Palazzi the maestro of martinis.
Palazzi is the bartender at Dukes bar in London, the former watering hole of James Bond creator Sir Ian Fleming.
The Classic Vesper James Bond martini at Dukes bar, once Sir Ian Fleming’s watering hole. — Picture courtesy of Dukes LondonFrom the classic Vesper martini, named after the original Bond Girl, Vesper Lynd, to the Fleming 89 made with notes from Bond’s signature scent Fleuris No. 89, Palazzi is an alchemist with vodka, gin and bitters.
With the Bond franchise celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first movie release, here are a few tips from Palazzi on how to clink to the milestone with the kind of martini Bond himself would approve of.
- Keep spirits in the freeze to make sure they’re ice cold.
- If you like your drinks slightly diluted, do like Bond and shake the martini mix. Otherwise, stir.
- If you want to make it with ice, make sure to drain the water first.
- Work fast.
- Use an organic lemon as you want the oils from the peel, not the wax, to penetrate the drink.
- Martinis were meant to be sipped, not gulped.
— Relaxnews
