What have Nelson Rockefeller and Queen Elizabeth 11 got in common? Apparently, Dubonnet. The 41st Vice-President of the U.S liked him on the rocks while Mrs. Windsor prefers it stiffer. With gin. The longest-lived, longest-reigning British monarch, the longest-serving female head of state ever, the oldest living and longest-reigning current monarch, and the oldest and longest-serving incumbent head of state has given a clue to her longevity. She has just accorded her prestigious royal warrant to her favorite drink, conferring on it the same coveted status as brands such as Bollinger. Pimm’s, Gordon’s Gin, Hine Cognac, and Laphroaig Scotch whisky. From 2021, bottles of Dubonnet will be able to feature the words by appointment to the Queen” along with an official royal crest. the Queen loves her gin and Dubonnet, one part gin and two parts Dubonnet, with two cubes of ice and a slice of lemon with the pips removed. Under the ice. Not on top. Her mother was a Dubonnet lady too.
Dubonnet, a French, sweet wine-based 14% ABV aperitif and blend of fortified wine, herbs, and spices, including quinine, and were first served in 1846. Currently produced in France by Pernod Ricard and in the US by Bardstown, Kentucky’s Heaven Hill Distilleries, chemist Joseph Dubonnet first created the drink for a French government competition to find a way of masking the foul taste of anti-malaria quinine administered to French Legionnaires in North Africa. The drink is also sometimes used in Negronis, where it’s mixed in equal parts with Campari and gin. Your royal drinks cabinet should also contain mixers by royal appointment. Royal warrants have been issued since the fifteenth century to supply the royal court and royal personages with stuff. The Queen has granted 686 Royal Warrants, the Prince of Wales 159 Royal Warrants and The Duke of Edinburgh has 38.
Earlier this year, Devon’s Luscombe’s Drinks became the official supplier of mixers. Buckingham Palace already makes its own gin (£40), sloe gin (£30), Palace of Holyroodhouse Highland malt whiskies (£75), Buckingham Palace port (£30), Buckingham Palace Tokaji (£60), vintage Champagne (£40), and Pauillac (£40). You can also buy Buckingham Palace corkscrews (£12.95) and Windsor castle glass tumblers (also £12.95).
The British royal family has its preferred supplier of Kent cobnuts (Aliens Farm), bath retailer (About Baths), hairbrush maker (Kent), broomsticks (A. Nash), horse feed (Allen & Page Ltd), luxury automobiles (Jaguar Land Rover Co), performance activewear (Musto), dog food (Judge’s Choice Petfood) and mattress manufacturer (Sleepeezee Ltd) The Wren’s Super Shoe Polish warrant has lapsed. Not it has its preferred fruit and mixer maker. So you and the Royal family can add St Clements juice, Rhubarb Crush, Wild Elderflower, or Damascene Rose Bubbly to your champers or Prosecco, Devon tonic (cucumber, grapefruit, or plain) to your gin, or Sicilian lemonade to your whisky. And hope Buckingham Palace comes out soon with a twizzle or muddling spoon. Luscombe founder, Gabriel David said: “After many years of having the pleasure of selling our drinks to the Royal family and pressing the apples from the Highgrove Estate, this is an enormously prestigious accolade. Our drinks have been enjoyed by the Royal family at home, served at place event and Buckingham Palace tea parties for many years so it is fantastic to now gain this formal recognition.”
Based in the Dartmoor Valley, Luscombe Drinks has been producing “beautifully crafted drinks” on a farm since 1975. All of Luscombe’s 30 products are made on-site, blending the finest organic fruits sourced from the world’s very best producers with its own source of Dartmoor spring water. Luscombe Drinks has won 78 UK Great Taste Awards. So far. Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and of Her other Realms and Territories Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, Defender of the Faith, is now an influencer.
Try a Dubonnet cocktail. A Martini, a Manhattan or maybe an Opera (cocktails.com), and definitely a Royale.
Ingredients
3 oz dry gin
1 oz Dubonnet Rouge
½ oz maraschino liqueur
2 dashes of Angostura bitters
crushed ice
lemon or orange zest for decoration
Instructions
Fill half of a mixing glass with ice.
– Add all ingredients.
– Stir properly for about 30 seconds. The mixture should be well-chilled by then.
– Strain the drink into the Martini glass.
– Garnish the glass with a twist of lemon or orange zest.
Dubonnet Royale
The Dubonnet Royale is an upgraded version of the Dubonnet & Gin. Small portions of absinthe and Cointreau give this cocktail additional aromas of oranges and anise.
Ingredients
2 oz Dubonnet Rouge
1 oz dry gin
1 dash Cointreau
2 dashes of Angostura bitters
2 dashes of orange bitters
1 dash absinthe
crushed ice
1 cherry and lemon zest for decoration
Instructions
For the Dubonnet Royale, use a Martini glass.
– Fill half of the mixing glass with ice.
– Add the Dubonnet, the gin, the Cointreau, and the bitters.
– Stir until the mix is well-chilled.
– Rinse the Martini glass with a dash of absinthe.
– Strain the drink from the mixing glass into the Martini glass.
– Garnish with a twist of lemon zest and a cherry.
