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Rapid Responses: Rapid Responses published:
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A Bond Impersonator?
- Kathleen O'Malley (18 December 1999)
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A Dry Comment...
- David S McWaters (18 December 1999)
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Not to mention onion and olives
- Shimon Barak (20 December 1999)
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Re: A Dry Comment...
- Otto Andresen (20 December 1999)
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Exercise is good for you
- Dag Rekve (20 December 1999)
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Re: Re: A Dry Comment...
- Matt Heywood (21 December 1999)
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Re: A Bond Impersonator? Author reply
- John Trevithick, Maurice Hirst (22 December 1999)
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Re: A Dry Comment...
- John Trevithick, Maurice Hirst (22 December 1999)
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Re: Exercise is good for you...
- John Trevithick, Maurice Hirst (22 December 1999)
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A good first step...
- Adam Jacobs (22 December 1999)
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Martini, Coke and medical research
- Ignacio J Previgliano (12 January 2000)
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Does ice have a role?
- Nicholas Walker (16 January 2000)
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The 'Perfect' Martini
- Andy del Rosal (24 January 2000)
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Shaken, not stirred
- C Bell (1 February 2000)
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Try Champagne
- Jacques Trevidic (21 February 2000)
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Bond's actual recipe
- Christopher M Giordano (12 August 2001)
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Does vodka make a difference?
- J Wahlman et al (25 March 2002)
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STIRRED , NOT SHAKEN
- Agustin Arranz Roa (2 March 2008)
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Kathleen O'Malley Medscape, Inc.
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I greatly enjoyed Trevithick et al.'s eye-opening study of martinis, but it seems that the researchers have been fooled by an imposter. The real James Bond always drank vodka martinis, never the traditional gin martini. That's just the sort of mistake I'd expect from a SMERSH agent trying to impersonate Bond: ordering the obvious "British" martini instead of the idiosyncratic, worldly vodka cocktail. |
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David S McWaters, Director, Clinical Content Consensus Health Corp.
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I read with great enthusiasm and enjoyment, your study, "Shaken, not stirred: bioanalytical study of the antioxidant activities of martinis." I must, however point out two flaws that may have inadvertantly affected your results. First, the proportion of gin to vermouth in your study was 2:1. Far from being a perfect dry martini, the overzealous use of vermouth was guaranteed to drown the gin. 6:1 or even 8:1 would have given the gin a fighting chance. Second, James Bond's admonitions notwithstanding, it is well known that shaking, or even vigorously stirring a martini, bruises the gin. Thus, I am not surprised that a stressed, bruised and drowned martini responded with a protective antioxidant effect. |
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Shimon Barak, Private Practice Maccabi Health Fund
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Although Trevithick et al (1) break through paper on martinis is of utmost importance I fully support Kathleen
O'Malley's (2) opinion that the study does not apply to Commander Bond in full since it uses gin instead of
vodka and to David S. McWaters (3) response on the unlikely proportion of vermouth.
But the main point this study has not taken into consideration is the importance of the two main additives to Mr Bond's beverage that may have far more influence on his health then thought at first glance. Double-O-7 uses to dip a smoked onion in his drink. The Antioxidant role of oils isolated from garlic (Allium sativum Linn) and onion (4) (Allium cepa Linn) on nicotine induced lipid peroxidation may help to explain the resistance of Mr Bond's organism to his addiction to cigarettes. The intake of flavonols and flavones is also inversely associated with subsequent coronary heart disease in most prospective epidemiological studies (5). In addition, at least according to his biographer, the late Ian Flemming, Mr Bond used to dip also an occasional olive in his Vodka Martini, with the advantages that this ingredient has on the CV system (6)(7) No doubt further studies are needed to evaluate the data and I am sure that the in vivo section will not fail due to lack of volunteers. References: 1. CC Trevithick, MM Chartrand, J Wahlman, F Rahman, M Hirst, JR Trevithick: BMJ 1999;319:1600-1602 2. Kathleen O'Malley , Medscape, Inc. eBMJ, 17 Dec 1999 3. David S. McWaters, Pharm.D., J.D., Director Clinical Content , Consensus Health Co. eBMJ, 17 Dec 1999 4. Helen A et al, Vet Hum Toxicol 1999 Oct;41(5):316-9) 5. Hollman PC, Katan MB, Food Chem Toxicol 1999 Sep-Oct;37(9-10):937-42 6. Visioli F, Galli C: Nutr Rev 1998 May;56(5 Pt 1):142-7 7. Assmann G et al (The Olive Oil and Mediterranean Diet Panel) Eur J Cancer Prev 1997 Oct 6(5):418-21) |
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Otto Andresen, Area sales manager Alsiano A/S
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Without having read the Bond novels myself, I recall having read that the preference for shaken not stirred is a fault introduced by the manuscript writer for the first movie. Actually, the James Bond of the novels prefers "stirred not shaken" because the shaking bruises the gin. |
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Dag Rekve, Manager AlkoKutt Norway
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My bet is that it’s the exercise and diet that contributes the most to Bonds good health. And I ask my self the question what this article is doing in a serious journal like BMJ. I cannot find the answer. Can anyone help me? The fact that the researchers did not know that Bond drinks Vodka Martini is alone a good reason to reject the article. When we add that Smirnoff heavily sponsors the Bond movies and the Canadian brewery Labatt funded the research and Corbott Distilers provided the liquor, the bells should have been ringing for the editor But its more serious that the researchers take it for granted that "Moderate consumption of alcoholic drinks seems to reduce the risks of developing cardiovascular disease, stroke, and cataracts, perhaps through antioxidant actions of their alcohol, flavonoid, or polyphenol contents." Thus reinforcing the impression that alcohol is good for you. There is to my knowledge no conclusive empirical evidence for this effect on human beings. According to NIAAA " While there is an association between moderate drinking and lower CHD risk, science has not confirmed that alcohol itself causes the lower risk. "And they continiue: "The apparent benefits of moderate drinking on CHD mortality are offset at higher drinking levels by increasing risk of death from other types of heart disease; cancer; liver cirrhosis; and trauma, including trauma from traffic crashes . Moderate drinking is not risk free. The trade-offs between risks and benefits can be exemplified by the fact that alcohol's anticlotting ability, potentially protective against heart attack, may increase the risk of hemorrhagic stroke, or bleeding within the brain." [National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism No. 45 October 1999]And B. Puddey and K.D. Croft review of "Alcohol, Stroke and Coronary Heart Disease" [Neuroepidemiology 18:6:1999, 292-302.] concludes that: Within this framework of current epidemiological evidence together with the results of basic laboratory studies, the conclusion at present is that while we may continue to speculate that there are anti-oxidants and pro-oxidants in alcoholic beverages that influence the development of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, this cannot yet be considered as an established scientific fact."Perhaps its time to focus on the interests behind the advocacy of the possible health benefits of alcohol? Regards Dag Rekve, Master of Business and Economics |
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Matt Heywood, SHO Surgery Ashford, Kent
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To my recollection, 007's tipple was, in fact, a vodka martini. Russian or Polish vodka for preference, I think. I think "Casino Royale" is the Flemming book in question, but don't quote me on that. On a personal note, I find 60:40 vodka:vermouth, shaken with crished ice and served with an olive gives the best result! |
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John Trevithick, Professor Dept.Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine &Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, Maurice Hirst
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We will be examining the antioxidant activity of other martini mixes in the New Millennium. It seems we have a SMERSH agent in our student ranks who has misdirected us!! Rest assured that he or she will be exposed. |
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John Trevithick, Professor Department of Biochemistry/Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, UWO, Maurice Hirst
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Your comments sensitized us to variations in the Martini Generating
process. We will give them a try in the New Millennium. |
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John Trevithick, Professor Department of Biochemistry/Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, UWO, Maurice Hirst
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We agree. Exercise and diet are obviously of value, not only to Commander Bond, but for everyone. In our discussions with the press, we have stressed the fact that modest consumption of alcoholic beverages is much preferred to heavier drinking. While not everyone would agree, many would. |
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Adam Jacobs, Director Dianthus Medical Limited
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I am very impressed with the study by Trevithick et al on a problem that has intrigued many martini drinkers for a long time. However, it only goes part of the way to telling us what we need to know. The study is certainly clear on the health benefits. Shaken martinis have twice the antioxidant effect of stirred martinis, so those of us who drink our martinis stirred should obviously drink twice as many of them to enjoy as healthy a life as Mr Bond. However, a more fundamental question remains: can anyone really taste the difference? I recently tried an (admittedly underpowered) experiment, in which I prepared two martinis, one shaken and one stirred. Both were made from six parts Stolichnaya vodka to one part Noilly Prat vermouth (and were thus more akin to Mr Bond's favourite drink than the variety of martini investigated by Trevithick et al). I gave them, blinded, to four guests at a party, none of whom was able to express a clear preference. Obviously, this was only a preliminary experiment. Whether it could be replicated in a larger sample is an important question that requires further research, which I will be more than happy to do if someone will provide the funding. |
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Ignacio J Previgliano, Head Critical Care Unit - Associate Professor Pathophysiology University Del Salvador Antartida Integral Emergency Institute
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It is amazing how easy is to publish any research no matter how crazy it could seem when it is made in the so called "first world". I've had a lot of fun with this paper as well as with the one by Umpierre SA, Hill JA, Anderson DJ. Effect of "Coke" on sperm motility. N Engl J Med 1985, Nov 21;313(21):1351. When I tell things like that to medical students they couldn't believe that somebody have enough time and resources to spend on these matters. I hope that you will have so open a mind for papers coming from developing countries. Sincerely |
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Nicholas Walker
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Dear Sir. If I could say two words to Trevithick and colleagues (1), they would be these: "Vodka!" and "ice!" I thank the authors for their informative account of the measurement of antioxidant properties of alcoholic drinks. Their findings do not support the thesis that wine is beneficial but other types of alcohol are not (for example, 2,3). The results are consistent with Gaziano et al (4) who assert that it is alcohol per se rather than the specific type of alcoholic beverage that, in moderation, reduces risk of cardiovascular and other diseases. Yet I have two concerns about their study. First, James Bond drinks Vodka Martinis, shaken, not stirred, even though the traditional cocktail is made with Gin. Thus the central finding that Mr Bond's peculiarly good health could be accounted for by his drinking habits remains untested. Second, why was the potential role of ice (an essential ingredient in Martini making) not evaluated? References 1 Trevithick CC, Chartrand MM, Wahlman J, Rahman F, Hirst M, Trevithick JR. Shaken, not stirred, bioanalytical study of the antioxidant activities of martinis. Br Med J 1999; 319: 1600-2. 2 Klatsky AL, Armstrong MA. Alcoholic beverage choice and risk of coronary artery disease mortality, do red wine drinkers fare best. Am J Cardiol 1993; 71: 467-9. 3 Wannamethee SG, Shaper AG. Type of alcoholic drink and risk of major CHD events and all cause mortality. Am J Public Health 1999; 89: 685-90. 4 Gaziano JM, Hennekens CH, Godfried SL et al. Type of alcoholic beverage and risk of myocardial infarction. Am J Cardiol 1999; 83: 52-7. Dr Nicholas Walker
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Andy del Rosal, Beverage Chemist Bacardi-Martini Product Development
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After reading a few of the responses I want to make a simple clarification: In Europe the classic Martini cocktail is prepared with 2 parts Gin and 1 part Vermouth. It is only in the US that the volume of vermouth in a Martini cocktail has been minimized. Bond is European and many of his 'antics' occurred outside the US. Therefore the recipe used in the study was respective of the Martini's Bond consumed. In fact, Bond could be seen as somewhat of a heretic because the Classic Martini is stirred, not shaken, because as some respondents have pointed out shaking bruises the gin.
Cheers, |
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C Bell
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Sir The biochemistry team from London Ontario, writing in the issue for 18-25 December (1), must be congratulated on their enterprise in discovering that a mixture of gin and vermouth has far more antioxidant activity than either alone and that this activity becomes mysteriously more powerful after shaking. It is however difficult to know how accurately their findings are a model for interpreting Commander James Bond's health status. First, the curious synergism between antioxidant capacities of the two liquors suggests that the proportions of each are likely to influence the final result substantially. The test martini consisted of 2 parts gin:1 part vermouth, but this would hardly meet the needs of a practised martini drinker like Mr Bond. Cocktail expert David Embury sets out 3.5:1 to 7:1 as the acceptable range for medium to dry martinis (2) and Mr Bond appears to agree with this. His biographer, Ian Fleming, was able to document the agent's preferred recipe only once, but this was 6 parts gin:2 parts vodka:1 part vermouth (3). As well, the Bond drink specified Kina Lillet in place of normal vermouth. It is possible that Mr Fleming misheard the details but, if Bond did favour this aperitif over the standard Lillet vermouth, then he was also ingesting a sizeable slug of quinine along with the pharmacopoeia of other herbs. Thus, the Ontario study may have underestimated the medicinal power of a true Bond martini. Mr Embury, incidently, notes that when a martini is shaken, not stirred, it then becomes a Bradford (2). One can see why Mr Bond preferred not to be too correct. 1. Trethivick CC, Chartrand MM, Wahlman J, Rahman F, Hirst M, Trevithick JR. Shaken, not stirred: bioanalytical study of the antioxidan actvities of martinis. BMJ 1999; 319: 1600-1602. 2. Embury DA. The Fine Art of Mixing Drinks. Faber & Faber, London, 1953. 3. Fleming I. Casino Royale. Jonathon Cape, London, 1953. Professor C Bell
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Jacques Trevidic, Centre Hospitalier Charcot CAUDAN (Bretagne) Hospital Pharmacist
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Dear Cousin, I'm very glad to see that there are brilliant successors of our ancestor Richard Trevithick, who invented train in XIXth century. Perhaps I should suggest you to investigate effects of Champagne upon experts on ESB ? So it would be a very helpful study for better relations between our countries... Kind regards Jacques Trevidic Pharmacien Centre Hospitalier Charcot Le Trescoet - BP 47 56854 CAUDAN Cedex |
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Christopher M Giordano, Engineering Specialist General Dynamics, Electric Boat
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The response from Mr. Andresen which suggests that Commander Bond only orders his martinis shaken in the movies is not correct. Also, as others have noted, Bond's vodka martini is made with both gin and vodka. The actual recipe is quoted below. Bond...looked carefully at the barman. "A dry Martini," he said. "One. In a deep champagne goblet." "Oui, monsieur." "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?" "Certainly, monsieur." The barman seemed pleased with the idea. -- James Bond, "Casino Royale", ch. 7, 1953 When I'm -- er -- concentrating, 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. -- James Bond, "Casino Royale", ch. 7, 1953 Bond was satisfied with the drink, but recommended to the barman that he might get better results if he used a vodka made from grain instead of potatoes. He later decided to name this drink "The Vesper" after his beautiful female co-spy in the novel. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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J Wahlman et al, Research assistant Department Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario
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EDITOR: In earlier correspondence to the BMJ we reported the results from our study of the antioxidant activities of martinis1. In our hands, James Bond's shaken martinis proved to be superior, at least statistically so, when compared to the stirred variety. Further, we suggested that 007's choice of drink might be reflected in his robust state of health as a result of his evident preference for the shaken variety. This was consistent with epidemiological data concluding that moderate consumption of alcoholic beverages appears to reduce the risk of developing certain diseases with presumed oxidative damage stages in their pathogenesis1. We received a number of insightful responses from your readership. Several readers, in the true academic spirit, pointed out an underlying error in the study, namely that our investigation was conducted on gin- vermouth martinis. Evidently, in contrast to his very British secret agent style in other aspects of his life, 007 consumed the more international form of martini, that based on the inclusion of vodka rather than gin. While we still believe that his real preference was for the gin -based cocktail and that substitution of vodka was intended primarily to confound his adversaries when he was abroad, we acknowledge the contribution. Moreover, we decided to put the issue to the test. Stirred and shaken martinis were assayed for their ability to quench luminescence by a procedure in which hydrogen peroxide reacts with luminol bound to albumin1. This method appears to be a more sensitive measure of antioxidant activity than other antioxidant assays because it detects antioxidant activity of ethanol2, which other assays fail to detect. Student's t test was used for statistical analysis. Data from before1 had shown that shaken gin martinis were more effective in deactivating hydrogen peroxide than the stirred variety. Moreover, both proved to be more effective than vodka martinis, or gin, vodka, or vermouth alone (Table 1)(0.072% of peroxide control for shaken gin martini, 0.157% for stirred, 0.64% for shaken vodka martini, 3.26% for stirred vs. 58.3% for gin, 84.3% for vodka, and 1.90% for vermouth). Preliminary experiments indicate that vodka martinis are less well endowed with polyphenols than gin martinis, which probably accounts, at least in part, for the enhanced antioxidant activity of the gin martinis (Table 2). The catechin equivalent concentration previously reported for gin martinis was: shaken (0.056 mmol/L catechin equivalents) stirred (0.060 mmol/L), while the polyphenol concentration of the vodka martinis is somewhat lower: shaken equal to stirred (0.002 mmol/L). Because the polyphenol components of vermouth ( 0.095 mmol/L catechin equivalents) are common to both drinks, the difference in polyphenol content between gin and vodka martinis is likely a result of the lower polyphenol content of vodka ( not detectable, 0 mmol/L catechin equivalents) as compared to gin ( 0.129 mmol/L catechin equivalents). In the light of these findings we suggest that 007 should re-examine his choice of martinis to optimize their antioxidant content, whenever circumstances permit him to do so.
Contributors: CCT originated the idea of studying martini antioxidant activity. LD and CN performed the antioxidant assays for vocka martinis, with assistance from Michelle Chartrand. JW performed the Folin Phenol analyses and performed the statistical analysis of the antioxidant activity and Folin Phenol analysis of the samples and the comparison to previous data for gin martinis. MH and JRT coordinated the study, aided in the statistical analysis, suggested appropriate tests and controls to perform in group meetings, and were mainly responsible for writing the paper. JW, CCT, LD, and CN suggested editorial changes to the text. JRT and MH are guarantors of the paper. Funding: Except for MH and JRT, all staff on the project were summer students supportedby Work Study, Canada Manpower, Youth Opportunities Unlimited Ontario, and by grants from Labatt Breweries to MH and JRT. Corby Distilleries supplied samples of vodka and vermouth.. Competing Interests:: The research grants from Labatt Breweries were used for a portion of the laboratory supplies, a portion of expenses incurred by CCT, JW, CN and LD in attending the conference of the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology in 1999, 2000, and 2001. J Wahlman, research assistant Lai Dinh, research assistant C Nguyen, research assistant C C Trevithick, research assistant J R Trevithick, Professor. Department Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C1 M Hirst, Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C1 References: 1. C C Trevithick, M M Chartrand, J Wahlman, F Rahman, M Hirst, J R Trevithick. Shaken, not stirred: bioanalytical study of the antioxidant activities of martinis. BMJ 1999;319: 1600-1602. 2. Trevithick, C.C., Vinson, J.A., Caulfeild, J., Rahman, F., Derksen, T., Bocksch, L., Hong, S., Stefan, A., Teufel, K., Wu, N., M.A., Hirst, M., and Trevithick, J.R. Is ethanol an important antioxidant in alcoholic beverages associated with risk reduction of cataract and atherosclerosis? Redox Reports 1999;4:89-93. |
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Agustin Arranz Roa, Consultant orthpaedic surgeon 30400 caravaca de la cruz-Murcia
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Gentlemen, I think and also agree out that Martini and Vodka should be stirred nor shaken. When it is shaken it becomes a drink called "Bradford ".Ref: Dr. Bell, Head of Physiology from Trinity College in Dublin. Competing interests: None declared |
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