Photo: Columbia Pictures
“Shaken, not stirred” is arguably the most famous James Bond quote. It’s a reference to the way the legendary spy likes to have his martinis prepared. Since Spectre, the newest Bond film, was released in theaters on November 6th, it’s the perfect time to take a closer look at the drink 007 is most closely associated with.
The first time the phrase was uttered was in the novel Diamonds Are Forever, written by Ian Fleming in 1956. It was actually a quote from another character and Bond himself didn’t say it until Dr. No in 1958. In the film series, Dr. Julius No is the first character to utter the phrase in the film version of the book. That movie came out in 1962 and James Bond (played by Sean Connery) finally said the phrase himself in Goldfinger in 1964. Since then, it has appeared in numerous films in different forms. Daniel Craig, the most recent actor to portray the British spy, responded to a bartender asking him if he wanted his martini “shaken or stirred”. Since he had just lost a large sum of money in a poker game, he responded with, “Do I look like I give a damn?” A rather tongue in cheek poke at the classic Bond phrase.
Since the phrase was first uttered by Connery, it has taken on a life of its own and shifted the way people see the martini. If don’t know any better, you might even assume that your martini should be shaken instead of stirred. Technically, according to many bartenders, this is completely inaccurate and you can think Ian Fleming’s famous hero for that.
Bond’s most famous line is pretty fun to say, but there has been a debate as to whether or not martinis should be shaken or stirred since its inception in the 1940s. As with most cocktails, there is much debate as to when and where the first martini was made. One side believes that gin was used first and one side believes that vodka was used first. Some legends even point to the possibility that the first martini was made in Persia in the 1930s.
All in all, most experts, biochemists, mixologists and martini aficionados agree that James Bond was completely wrong in martini preference. Shaking a martini adds air into the mix. This creates bubbles which make the final drink appear cloudy. Nobody wants a cloudy, murky martini. I doubt Bond himself would really prefer this version over a clear, clean, stirred martini.
The classic martini is made with gin and vermouth and is garnished with an olive or a twist of lemon. It’s one of the most well-known, iconic drinks in American history. It was extremely popular when Fleming wrote the first Bond book and remains that way to this day.
“On a purely technical level, the act of stirring is simply achieving temperature change and dilution with the purposeful exclusion of texture,” says Los Angeles cocktail expert Alex Day of Proprietors LLC. When a cocktail is shaken, the disruption causes small bubbles to form in the cocktail. “While that frothiness is delightful in a classic Daiquiri, it can cause some challenges in spirituous drinks like a Martini.” There’s no disputing that a shaken martini tastes just as good. The problem is that it won’t have the clean, silky appearance that you get from gentle stirring. “A stirred Martini is smooth with the ingredients in a chilly harmony, while the shaken Martini is disjointed, as though the ingredients are fighting for attention. The difference is subtle, but noticeable when you’re looking for it.”
To create the impeccable martini that Bond deserves, there’s a few facts from Day to keep in mind:
1- The cocktail is always stirred, not shaken, in order to achieve the optimum temperature and level of dilution.
2- Shaking results in ice breakage, which over dilutes the drink and will make it cloudy with ice chips on the surface. Too much water in the drink means it will warm faster once it reaches the imbiber.
3- Lastly, temperate is key: chilling slows down the oxidation process.
If you want to bypass the martini debate altogether, but still try a tasty James Bond themed cocktail, try these six cocktails worthy of 007.
From Seattle:
You Only Live Twice
Pennyroyal, Seattle, Head Bartender Chad Phillips
· 2 oz Gonzalez Byass Tio Pepe Fino En Rama Sherry
· 1 oz Navarre Pineau des Charentes Rose
· 2 dashes Scrappy’s Chocolate Bitters
Combine ingredients in a mixing glass, stir, strain into a coupe
Garnish: Orange twist, expressed over the glass then discarded.
This is a take on the classic martini, Bond’s drink of choice. Because it can be a wee bit difficult to be the best Bond you can be after a few gin (or vodka) martinis, I switched out the gin for a lower proof dry sherry and the vermouth for the incredibly luxurious Pineau des Charentes Rose. The chocolate bitters add just the right amount of depth. This is most definitely an elegant drink for a dignified gentleman.
Amore Roma
Bookstore Bar & Café, Seattle, Executive Chef Caprial Pence
· 3 oz floral gin (such as The Botanist)
· .5 oz cynar
· quarter of an orange, squeezed
· orange zest garnish
Shaken with ice served up with a twist of orange
With the new 007 film partially set in Rome, we played off of Romans being knows in the culinary world for their use of artichokes. The martini is made with an artichoke spirit and gin. The artichoke spirit is a bit bitter and sweet, just like James!
The Spectre
Tulio, Seattle,Bar Manager Greg Zacher
· 2 oz Bombay Sapphire
· 1/2 oz Aqua De Cedro
· 1/4 oz lemon juice
Shaken and served up with a lemon twist
This is a riff on a cocktail called the 007 (or the James Bond) which includes vodka, gin, and limoncello. This new version is now gin based with the Aqua De Cedro being the “limoncello” accent however using grappa instead.
From Chicago:
Oaxacan 07
Sable Kitchen & Bar, Chicago, Bartender Chris Cavarra
· 2 oz Del Maguey Mezcal Vida
· 1 oz Lillet Blanc
· ¼ oz Amaro Ramazzoti
· 1 dash Fee’s Orange bitters
Stir ingredients and strain into Georgian.
This is a play on a classic Vesper, which was invented by James Bond in 1953’s Casino Royale: Gin, Vodka and Lillet shaken and served up with a lemon peel garnish. This riff utilizes mezcal, hence the name ‘Oaxacan’ which is a nod to the Southern Mexican state, Oaxaca. Also, this version is stirred as an ode to Ian Fleming’s book where the cocktail is ‘stirred not shaken’ but Bon flubbed the lines and it sounded better, so it was kept in the movie. Instead of a lemon peel, Fee’s Orange Bitters and Amaro Ramazzoti are used to impart citrus into the cocktail and pair with the mezcal.
From Portland:
Goldfinger
Bacchus Bar, Portland, Bartender Andrew Call
· 2 oz Rittenhouse Rye
· ¾ oz Antica Carpano Vermouth
· ¾ oz cointreau
· ½ oz lime luice
Combine in beaker, add ice and stir. Strain into coupe glass and garnish with a flamed orange peel.
This twist on a martini makes whiskey the base, giving the cocktail an alluring golden color (a la Sean Connery’s 1965 nemesis), and uses a sweet vermouth for extra richness. The flamed orange peel? That’s the 007 factor.
Pussy Galore
Bartender Bryan Galligos, Bacchus Bar (Portland, OR)
· 1 ½ oz Belvedere Vodka
· 1 oz lime juice
· ½ oz lime cordial
· Heavy pinch of lime frost salt
· Cranberry juice
Combine first four ingredients in shaker, shake and strain into chilled coupe glass. Add a “float” of cranberry juice.
This cocktail is a spin off a classic cosmo, but with a double dose of lime and a pinch of salt, making it tangy, sweet and salty – just like its namesake Bond girl.
