Cocktails Synonymous With Famous Casino Connoisseurs

Casinos and cocktails go together beautifully, and there’s something about the sophistication of betting big while sipping a delicious beverage that continues to capture imaginations the world over. In fact, many of the most well-known casino-goers from reality and fiction have an apparent penchant for cocktails, so here are a few examples to illustrate the depth of this relationship.

The Vesper Martini

An obvious opener, but a goodie, the Vesper Martini is the creation of British superspy James Bond, and it’s a little different from his own preferred tipple, since he conjured it up during Casino Royale in honor of fellow undercover agent and love interest, Vesper Lynd.

Novelist Ian Fleming had Bond order a drink consisting of three shots of Gordon’s gin, a single measure of vodka, and half a shot of Kina Lillet, a now-defunct mixer. Shaken over ice until very cold and finished off with lemon peel, its modern equivalent can be made by switching out Kina Lillet for Lillet Blanc and a dash of bitters. And if you’d rather not head all the way to Montenegro to sample it, you can make one at home while playing at a Canadian casino live online to replicate the experience.

Flame of Love

Every member of the Rat Pack spent a lot of time in the casinos of Las Vegas during their heyday, both performing on stage and prowling the gaming floor with a drink in hand. Dean Martin was a fan of Manhattans, although he also had a cocktail created for him at Hollywood bar-restaurant Chasen’s. Christened the Flame of Love, it’s a punchy number that lives up to the passion of its name.

The chief ingredients are 2oz of vodka, a quarter ounce of fino sherry, and orange peel. The sherry is used to rinse the glass, while the vodka gets shaken over ice with another splash of sherry, before being strained into the glass. The orange peel is the literal fireworks: holding a lit match next to it and giving it a squeeze creates showy bursts of flame (hence the name) as its oil is expelled. Adding it to the finished drink imparts fruitiness and a touch of caramelization.

Thin Man Martini

Something about martinis seems to really click with casino connoisseurs, and in fact, James Bond wasn’t the only fictional character to have an affinity for cocktails of this kind. Turn back the clock even further than Ian Fleming’s days as an author, and the detecting duo Nick & Nora made a splash onscreen with The Thin Man, a 1930s movie based on a book with its fair share of hard-drinking and casino-based action.

In turn, the Thin Man Martini gained popularity in the wake of the film’s success. It’s essentially a dry martini, made with dry gin and dry vermouth, topped with a Spanish olive or a lemon twist. A dash of orange bitters can be used, but it isn’t mandatory.

So, there you have it, a trio of cocktails that found fame thanks to casino connoisseurs, real and fictitious. Even if you’re not a gambler, these tipples should tempt your taste buds.