TRANSATLANTIC GLAM

Queen Mary 2 departing from New York

From the Queen Mary 2 to London’s best bars, one devotee of the spirit begins a quest to find Britain’s best gin cocktails

by Janice Tober

Samuel Cunard originally launched the Cunard Line in 1839 to carry mail between the UK and North America. He would never have imagined that, a century later, his ships would be carrying some of the world’s most glamorous passengers – celebrities and royalty among them – during the golden age of transatlantic crossings.

I was keen to experience some of that glamour myself when I boarded the Queen Mary 2 in New York, the starting point for the journey to Southampton, England. From there, I planned to head straight to London. I wasn’t there to see Big Ben or Westminster Abbey. My goal was to explore the city that made gin famous. As a devoted gin connoisseur, it was my happy place.

But first, it was my cruise onboard the QM2. I expected it to be quintessentially British and offer a proper afternoon tea, a full English breakfast and — most importantly for me, at least — a happy hour that included plenty of gin and tonics. I had visions of imbibing them on the windswept deck, wrapped in a warm blanket, while sitting on a wooden lounger watching the ocean waves swell and sway as I sipped.

The ship delivered on all counts and more. My heart leapt when I discovered Cunard not only has a fine selection of gin, but also its very own exclusive brand, 3 Queens Gin from Edinburgh-based Pickering’s Gin. (Coincidentally, it is owned by the great nephew of a former Cunard captain.) Of the brand’s three gins,

I preferred the more intense Queen Elizabeth, made with botanicals from the Far East, including lotus root, star anise, Kaffir lime leaves and cardamom. It’s ideal for a full-flavored G&T with a kick of spice.

After arriving in Southampton, I made the trek to London to continue my gin-focused discoveries. The first stop was The Ginstitute, where gin aficionados learn about the history of their beloved spirit in the UK, from London’s early gin craze to the beginnings of the gin palaces, which evolved into the pubs we know today. And once I got my fill of history and the gin cocktails served during the class, the fun really begins. With my newfound understanding of gin, I was able to craft my own bespoke bottle to take home. Mixing ingredients with a group of like-minded individuals, I found the ginsoaked conversation particularly interesting as we spoke earnestly about the salient features of each ingredient and what they might add to our blends.

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Stoked with more knowledge, it was time to take it for a night or two on the town and discover a few London gin joints. Here’s where my gin passion took me.

Mr. Fogg’s Gin Parlour

This is one of those places that looks like it was designed for stopping in for a tea, not a G&T. This Victoriana parlor serves up a wealth of rare and hard to find varieties – more than 200, including ultra-rare ones. I placed myself in the barkeeps’ capable hands. I found they were great for recommending the best gins based on my preferences. I savored each one thoughtfully as I relaxed on a settee and soaked up the elegant atmosphere.

Mother’s Ruin Gin Palace

This small neighborhood joint offers two house-made small-batch gins, brimming with botanicals and fruit. The award-winning Mother’s Ruin Old Tom Gin takes cocktails up a notch with a richer, sweeter profile than traditional London dry gins. The fruity Damson Gin is made from plums picked on the family orchard in Cumbria. If you’re lucky, the bar might even have a limited-edition gin or two onsite, like the rose geranium or fennel.

The Brig at Merchant House

Located near St. Paul’s Cathedral, The Brig is a private bar within a bar. Here you can sample one of more than 400 gins on hand in a wee bar that holds up to four people. The drinks menu is a takeaway treasure, focusing on the history and movement of spirits, and the navy painted brick walls and drawings of ships brought me right back to where I started my gin journey — the QM2.

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Dined there. Tried that.

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Real Traveler Stories

Q THE PATAGONIA TREK

We were total rookies in the wrong shoes but we had a blast by ERIKA HARKINS

“Oh no,” I said, staring out over the teal lake at the base of Mirador los Cuernos, the starting point for our trek into Chile’s Torres del Paine national park. Jake turned to see my panic-stricken face. “No, no, no, no,” I repeated as my eyes welled up with tears.

“Erika, what is it?” he said, now deeply concerned, as I began frantically searching my pack, only to realize that my prized Sportivas were back at the hotel, two hours away. Of course. On the most epic adventure my husband and I had ever attempted, I made the gravest mistake an ultrarunner could make. Now, I had to accept that I would be doing this 10-day trek without my running shoes.

L o v e T r i p s Lo v e t r i p s H O N E Y M O O N

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Catching up on Love

Laughter is the best medicine for newlyweds Sarah & Travis Kerr

Sarah’s heart was bursting with glee as she stood on the platform of the 2,600-foot Dragon’s Breath flight line. If you want to go fast on a zip line, weight can be an advantage. Sarah wanted to go fast. But the petite model and hairstylist needed a little help to make that happen.

Enter Travis, Sarah’s new husband, who worked the crowd to gather bottles of water. Soon, Sarah had bottles in her backpack, her pockets, and tucked inside her shirt. Aquagirl wasn’t her usual Bohemian-glam look, but it did the trick. Finally, she let go. And for the first time in many years, she felt absolutely free.

Hailing from Chicago, Sarah didn’t get to enjoy her teens as her school mates did. She spent those years caring for her mother, who lost a hard-fought battle with cancer when Sarah was just 21. To break free of the grief, she flew to Florida for a fresh start.

There, she met and fell madly in love with Travis, a commercial architect with a hipster beard, a dazzling smile, and a heartache from a recent divorce. Together, Sarah and Travis craved a joy-filled, freespirited life that would make up for lost time. After a sunset wedding on a tranquil beach, they boarded a Caribbean cruise and left their worries behind.

At a wine tasting, a huge bottle of Caymus brought a rush of memories—the Cab Sav was the first wine the couple had shared when they first met. In Labadee, Haiti, they zipped and played. At Paradise Beach, in Cozumel, bartender Ricardo kept the party rolling. “Whenever he passed us he would yell, ‘Mojito?!’ And we would cheer, ‘Mojitoooo!!’ A few minutes later, more mango mojitos would arrive.”

On board, they started each day with balcony breakfasts. “We would sit there and enjoy the quiet before we got off at the ports. It was very romantic,” Sarah recalls. One evening, they joined a group of revelers at a private party in the Rising Tide Bar. “It floated up above the whole crowd!” Since then, they’ve cruised together several times.

“We made lifelong friends on our honeymoon cruise.” How cool is that?! Amateurs, Escargot & a Tanzanite Ring

by CHARLEE TOM AKA @travelcharlee

“I want to sail with your family!” said my friend Debi when I told her about our upcoming New Year’s Eve cruise. Then she upped the ante with,“We can share a cabin!” That’s where I drew the line.“NO WAY!” I said, without hesitation. If 18 of us were traveling together, I was going to need my own space.

I make my Texas family sound so highmaintenance, but they really aren’t at all. Born on New Year’s Eve and what my father called “amateur night,” my Mother loves when we are all together for family celebrations, like her birthday. That year, we were chilly as we set sail from Galveston for the Western Caribbean, but the further south we went, the more we warmed up ... in more ways than one.

In Belize, I joined my nieces and nephews for spooky cave tubing and shared their joy as they ziplined for the first time. That afternoon, we were all chaos and giggles trying to sit still for a family portrait. In Roatan, my brother’s family swam with dolphins while the rest of us took a catamaran excursion ... with boozing all the way back, of course!

Each evening, we met for sunset cocktails, then made our way to two large tables for boisterous family dinners. One night, one of my family members got overly enthusiastic about ordering escargot and asked for 10 orders “to share.” Riiiiight. Can you say mortified? Kudos to the wait staff who put up with us that night and every night of the cruise. They definitely deserved a raise after that week.

A few days later, in a jewelry shop in Cozumel, Mother picked out a BIG beautiful tanzanite ring as my father waited outside, poised to come in and “make the deal.” He was a true Texas rancher who drove a hard bargain on every occasion. One time, on a cruise in Alaska, he tried to trade a bull for a diamond. This time, to our relief, he offered a credit card for payment.

And Mother does love that ring. Not long ago she pulled me aside and said, “My darling daughter, do you like this ring? Because, when I’m gone, it will be yours.” I was astonished, and I do love the ring … but I love my sweet mother even more.

Curious, Just Like You

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