An article popped on my Facebook feed that the Queen of England released her recipe for Pimm’s. The Youtube video made by her personal chef brought back such happy memories that I had to share them with you.
In 2006, Judy Guida and I went to England and visited places mentioned in the Russell/Holmes books by Laurie R. King. We had so much fun!
In The Moor, Holmes and Russell visit Holmes’s godfather at Lewtrenchard, a manor at the edge of Dartmoor (famous as the setting of The Hounds of the Baskerville.) An aging Sabine Baring Gould owned Lewtrenchard. Here is the tricky part. Sabine Baring Gould was a real person and Lewtrenchard is a real manor. When we visited, it was a hotel and restaurant.
Holmes and Russell enjoy several meals at the manor which the author described in great detail, and we were able to experience everything they did. (Fiction and non-fiction are often blurred in England. In The Moor, Sabine Baring Gould is Sherlock Holmes’ godfather. In reality, Gould’s grandson wrote a biography of Sherlock Holmes.)
What does all this have to do with Pimm’s? Well, I had never heard of this drink, but while we were waiting in an anteroom for our table to be prepared, we were offered one. I don’t drink, but Judy enjoyed a glass.
Pimm’s is a fruit-flavored gin usually served as a cocktail with orange slices, strawberries, and cucumber in the bottom of a tall glass topped with Pimm’s and lemonade. It was a fun drink to have before a remarkable meal.
We didn’t think much about Pimm’s until we were at Gatwick Airport for our flight home. There was a Pimm’s trailer right on the concourse, and of course, I had to take a picture.
The Queen’s Pimm’s cocktail has many more garnishes and uses Sprite. (The chef called it lemonade, so now I wonder what was in Judy’s drink.) I’ll be watching more of the Queen’s chef on Youtube because nothing brings back travel memories like food and drink.
