If you do it right, a Vesper ain’t so bad. Instead of adding vodka, use a decent pisco and what you now have is something with more structure and mouthfeel that might even be worth drinking. Yes, I’ve turned a corner from a couple of years ago when I wrote this article about how a Vesper is weak sauce. Someday I may even drink one…

Infuse the pisco with something cool like the normally useless Buddha’s Hand Citron which is currently available at your local California farmer’s market and it can even be seasonal. Relevance! Impress your friends with your trivial knowledge of archaic, mutated fruits! The Buddha’s Hand also makes a swell holiday decoration if you want your Thanksgiving and Christmas to be swirling full of nightmarish visions of The Kraken, Cthulhu, and the face huggers from the Alien franchise.

Vesper of Total Enlightenment

1.5 oz. London Dry Gin (We use Ford’s)

1 oz. Buddha’s Hand Infused Pisco (We use Capurro Acholado)

.5 oz. Kina L’Aero d’or

2 Dashes Housemade Orange Bitters

There’s a lot behind this one. I tried explaining everything when the cocktail went on the menu last night and realized how much depth it has in story as well as history.

First, the name. It comes from Caddyshack (1980) in a scene where Bill Murray, as the weirdo groundskeeper, Carl Spackler, explains how he was caddying for the Dalai Lama and was given no tip, but instead, granted total enlightenment.

Second, the history. The Vesper Cocktail, which means ’evening’ in Latin or can also mean ’evening star’ or ’evening prayer’ was invented by Ian Fleming and published in the 1953 James Bond novel Casino Royale. The original recipe calls for Lillet. Now, Lillet ain’t what it used to be kiddos. In terms of the lighter apertif selections, I would place it on the lower end of the spectrum with Cocchi Americano being in the top tier.

Ford’s Gin is the workhorse of any good bar program. Cheap but good and also a higher proof (90) than the typical 80 which to me never seems to be enough oomph for cocktails.

The big shining star here is the product Kina L’Aero d’or from Tempus Fugit Spirits out of Switzerland. This is the ingredient that will turn a ho hum Vesper into one that’ll blow your hair back. Tempus Fugit has been the top standard for years and all their products are delicious. This is their deal–they take old recipes and improve upon them. In this case, the old Lillet recipe. I mean, who knows how much truth there is to all of this but why would they state something that isn’t true? Their products are some of the best.

The last component here is to make your own orange bitters which is what we do at Rustic. Reason being that store bought orange bitters just aren’t as good for whatever reason. I mentioned making your own in my last post so maybe in the future we will see a tutorial.

This is your AI generated image for this post, #438, 11/29/25