Lillet

Martinis get all the glory, but this is the first cocktail James Bond ever ordered.

This riff on the martini has a touch of pear and cardamom. It’s the ideal make-ahead batched cocktail for your next gathering.

This refreshing summer cocktail is finished with a bright and briny pickled green tomato.

Throw chopped celery stalks into a juicer (or blender) for a refreshing cocktail base. The vegetal flavor is mellowed by citrusy Lillet blanc and lemon juice, while its savory side is supported with mezcal and a pinch of smoked salt.

I created the Arinato to be a lighter stirred drink and to celebrate the more delicate sides of mezcal. I use the 80-proof Ilegal Joven; paired with floral fortified wines, it makes for an easy-sipper that proves how elegant mezcal can be.

This light, refreshing drink will be your new favorite to serve at brunch or picnics.

Hey Lillet fans, keep open bottles in the fridge as you would with any other wine. Even though Lillet is fortified, it will still oxidize and lose flavor over time.

Of this take on a martini, James Bond quipped, "I never have more than one drink before dinner. But I do like that one to be large and very strong and very cold and very well-made." What he said.

Saba is wine-grape juice that's been reduced until syrupy and concentrated. If you can't find it, use a few drops of aged balsamic vinegar.

Ben Clemons, bartender at Bar 308 in Nashville, created this sage- and lime-infused cocktail for our story, Spring Cocktails Perfect for Brunch. Cocchi Aperitivo Americano is an Italian aperitif wine beloved for its citrus, herbal, and bitter flavor profile. It's becoming easier to find, but if you can't locate a bottle, Clemons recommends substituting Lillet Blanc.

The original recipe for the Vesper was created not by a bartender but by popular spy novelist Ian Fleming. In Fleming’s 1953 book Casino Royale, Agent 007 instructs the bartender to prepare him a Martini with “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.” Bond named this drink after Vesper Lynd, his first love interest in the series. Kina Lillet vermouth, with its flavor notes of quinine, no longer exists, so we replaced it with Lillet Blanc and a dash of Angostura bitters. We opted for a blend of Charbay clear vodka and Plymouth Navy Strength gin to finish off our interpretation. This is the cocktail that introduced the phrase “shaken, not stirred,” which changed Martini drinking forever. Thank you, Mr. Bond.

Why should kids have all the fun? A lovely way to keep the conversation going long after dessert, these soft, aromatic little confections are like Peeps for adults. Lillet perfumes the marshmallows with orange and honey notes and gives them a haunting buzz.

Who cares what is in this cocktail? The name sold me when I read it in Harry Craddock's The Savoy Cocktail Book (1930). This is one of many variations.

(Lillet-and-Lemon-Syrup Cocktail)