In this week of James Bond mania (and lousy film reviews if ours is anything to go by) I got into the 007 mood by drinking what is said to be the best martini in London (some say the world) in a setting familiar to Bond's creator Ian Fleming. The location for this hedonistic pleasure was the beautiful bar of Duke's hotel in the heart of London's St James's, which since 2006 has been run by hotelier Gordon Campbell Gray, the creator of Woodstock's Feathers. I was lucky enough to be staying there on Friday night as a prelude to dinner at the Royal Academy and a sneak preview of the not-to-be-missed Byzantium exhibition, which is reviewed today on Page 3.

Ian Fleming was a regular visitor to the bar, which opened in the year of his birth, exactly a century ago. Its drinks so fuelled his creative muse that he decided 007’s favourite tipple would be a martini "shaken, not stirred". Its drinks remain legendary today: The New York Times 'T' Style Magazine recently called it "the discreet home of the perfect martini".

The martini I enjoyed on Friday was neither shaken nor stirred. It was made for me by the hotel's bar manager Alessandro Palazzi, whom I photographed (above) while he was making it.

I opted for a gin-based martini rather than Bond's favoured vodka. I was asked to select the gin and chose that Scottish delight Hendrick's, knowing that a place so grand as Duke's would be sure to have it. It is strong, packed with flavour and (oddly) best served with a slice of cucumber as a drink by itself. Its only minus point is an opaque black bottle which means you are not alerted to the calamity of running out.

, a tiny quantity of extra dry vermouth (Martini) was sprayed from an atomiser; then the rim of the glass was wiped with freshly cut lemon peel; finally the ice-cold gin was poured straight from the freezer. The drink was utterly delicious; indeed, the taste remains with me as I write. Anyone wis hing to enjoy the same, however, ought to take note of the price — £15 each, I fear.