Vodka martini. Shaken, not stirred ?? is a famous quote from England’s best secret agent, James Bond. The vodka martini from Mr. Bond is different from the classic martini or the vodkatini and thus according to the own recipe of Ian Fleming, the author of the 007 books. Ian Fleming has even used another variation on the martini in the books that few will know. And why should the martini actually be shaken, but not stirred?
History of the martini
The martini is one of the most famous American cocktails. The origin of the Martini is unclear. The honor of making the first martini could belong to Martini di Arma di Taggia, a bartender at the Kickerbocker hotel in New York who created the first variation in 1911. Or perhaps the cocktail emerged from an 1862 drink called Martinez, which was already very similar. Or maybe the cocktail is named after the California town of Martinez. In any case, it is certain that the origin is American and that the cocktail is mostly served there.
The classic martini
A good martini needs preparation. The supplies are:
- 1 cocktail glass
- 50 ml gin
- 2 drops of dry white vermouth
- lemon wedge
- a cocktail stick
- an olive
The gin and the cocktail glass must first be thoroughly chilled in a refrigerator. Then the rim of the glass is rubbed with the lemon wedge. Then the gin is poured and the vermouth drops are added. The lemon can be squeezed over the glass. Finally, the olive is put on the cocktail stick and placed in the glass.
Vodka martini
As the description shows of the classic martini, there is still little shaking or stirring. That also happens when you have to make the Martini for James Bond, which is known as the vodka martini. The supplies are:
- 1 cocktail glass
- 1 cocktail shaker
- 25 ml gin
- 25 ml of vodka
- 2 drops of dry white vermouth
- ice cubes
- lemon wedge
- a cocktail stick
- an olive
Again, it is recommended to chill the gin and cocktail glass in a refrigerator. Then the rim of the glass is rubbed with the lemon wedge. The gin, vodka and vermouth go into the cocktail shaker and are shaken vigorously with the ice cubes. The martini is poured into the glass through the sieve. The lemon can be squeezed over the glass and the olive on the cocktail stick is the decoration. In some James Bond films, the olive on the cocktail stick is replaced by a slice of lime.
Vesper Martini
James Bond is also the inventor of the Vesper Martini, a variation on his own Vodka Martini. This appears in the book Casino Royale (1953). This is generally believed to be the only time James Bond has ordered this martini. The supplies are:
- 1 cocktail glass
- 1 cocktail shaker
- 30 ml Gordon’s gin
- 10 ml of vodka
- 5 ml Kina Lillet
- ice cubes
- a slice of lime
Again, it is recommended to chill the gin and cocktail glass in a refrigerator first. The gin, vodka and Kina Lillet then go into a cocktail shaker with the ice cubes and are shaken vigorously. The martini is poured into the glass through the sieve. The lime slice goes into the glass last for decoration. Kina Lillet is a relatively unknown French dessert wine and serves as a replacement for the vermouth.
Why shake and not stir?
In principle, a cocktail consisting only of transparent ingredients, such as the martini, should not be shaken. The idea is that the texture of the drink then remains clear. Shaking is an aggressive stirring and can cause the cocktail to look fogged. However, when adding opaque liquids like lemon juice, the clarity of the liquid is at stake anyway. That is why both variants are possible for the martini.
The benefit of shaking the cocktail is fourfold. First, making the drink is faster. Stirring with ice cubes is a slower way of cooling the drink than shaking with ice cubes. Second, shaking gives a stronger emphasis on the juniper flavor contained in gin. This slightly changes the taste of the cocktail. Third, shaking improves the amount of antioxidants in the cocktail. Antioxidants are protective substances that your body needs. Fourth and last, vodka used to sometimes have an oily taste when the vodka was made using potatoes. Shaking mixed the oil better than stirring and thus reduced the oily flavor.
What do these benefits mean for 007? He probably doesn’t care much about the amount of antioxidants. The most logical explanation is that Mr. Bond opts for a quickly made cocktail in which he prefers taste over the clarity of the liquid. The shaking would have had a major effect on diminishing the oily taste, certainly in 1953 with Ian Fleming’s first books. This also explains why James Bond also states in Casino Royale that vodka made using grains in the cocktail taste better. This type of vodka is much less oily.