Bond Is Back! (And He’s Thirsty…): Cinema Retro Takes You Inside The 007 Belvedere Bash In London

This article originally appeared on CinemaRetro

By Mark Cerulli

“Vodka Martini, shaken, not stirred.”  As soon as James Bond uttered that iconic phrase, the vodka martini became as much a part of the character as his Aston Martin or Walther PPK. While previous films have seen 007 quaff a certain Dutch beer and we know he likes Sake (as long as it’s served at the correct temperature), in SPECTRE, Bond is back to his beverage of choice – and that choice is Belvedere.

Belvedere President Charles Gibb told Cinema Retro that, “We are absolutely thrilled that Belvedere is associated with James Bond and SPECTRE. Everybody knows that Bond is a man of distinction and that his drink of choice is a Belvedere martini.” The partnership is Belvedere’s biggest to date and to drive home the 00 association, the brand has pulled out all the stops, creating two limited edition Bottles (one of which has its own lighted base) as well as a Martini Set complete with elegant 007-etched glasses.

In London, Belvedere further tied into SPECTRE by staging an invitation only screening and vodka bash at Loulou’s, a very trendy private club in upscale Mayfair. They picked up the film’s Day of the Dead vibe with costumed dancers and waitstaff; and the barmen created a number of beverages, chief among them the Belvedere Vodka Martini. The drinks were happily consumed by the hip, young crowd that descended from the nearby screening. I felt it my duty to try one… maybe two and they were delicious – crisp with a splash of olive juice. Mmmmm. Everyone was in a buoyant mood – there was praise for the film and, of course, the free-flowing Belvedere put everyone in the holiday spirit.

The film left this scribe mightily impressed, easily the best of Daniel Craig’s Bonds. Go see it – then toast 007 with a martini! (Belvedere, of course.)