“A dry martini”, James Bond requests in Ian Fleming’s 1953 Casino Royale. “One. In a deep champagne goblet. Just a moment. Three measures of Gordon’s, one of vodka, half a measure of Kina Lillet. Shake it very well until it’s ice cold, then add a large, thin slice of lemon peel. Got it?” Well no, Ian, I do not have it, nor do I want it, because I firmly believe such a drink to be too much.
Too much, you see, because I don’t want just one. Not being a super sleuth, a gun-toting mega spy, I’d hope to have more time of an evening, which means I should normally like to bed in for at least three drinks, and — you might be contrarian all you like, you’ll be sozzled — three Vespers together is frankly OTT.
