Silversea Water Cooler: Welcome! Part Five

[SteveH2508]

4 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

The secret to G&T connoisseur-ship is the tonic, which comprises 3/4 or so of the mixture.  A lengthy discussion of G&Ts on the Azamara board [which is dominated by Brits] turned up many preferences among Gin but unanimous agreement that the best tonic is Fever-Tree.  And Fever-Tree has helpfully put together a chart that shows which flavo(u)r of tonic goes best with which Gin:

I shall admit to being one of those Brits - the meltdown I had on Azamara when served a Royal Club tonic was epic (and rather out of character). The bartenders soon learnt that Brits will not accept that RC cr*p in a G&T and kept back a stash of Schweppes for us. Not Fevertree but acceptable for a session drink.

 

The only way it might have been acceptable would have been in a ratio of about 90:10 G to T, when one might as well have had a Martini instead. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

31 minutes ago, SteveH2508 said:

I shall admit to being one of those Brits - the meltdown I had on Azamara when served a Royal Club tonic was epic (and rather out of character). The bartenders soon learnt that Brits will not accept that RC cr*p in a G&T and kept back a stash of Schweppes for us. Not Fevertree but acceptable for a session drink.

 

The only way it might have been acceptable would have been in a ratio of about 90:10 G to T, when one might as well have had a Martini instead. 

I and many others are very grateful for your assertive advocacy [a much nicer word than 'meltdown'!].

 

So, since I've raised the topic:  what brand of tonic does Silversea serve?

[FlyingScotSailors]

30 minutes ago, SteveH2508 said:

The only way it might have been acceptable would have been in a ratio of about 90:10 G to T, when one might as well have had a Martini instead. 

We had a friend whose technique for making a Martini was to pour the vermouth into the glass, swirl it around, and spill it out, then add the gin.  Unfortunately, his technique for making a G&T was to pour the tonic into the glass, swirl it around, and ..........

 

On a more serious note, Schweppes makes an "Indian Tonic", that is not available in North America, but which we find compares well with Fever-tree.

[Stumblefoot]

14 hours ago, Reef Knot said:

Maybe I’ve been missing out all these years.

I don’t think you’ll ever go back after having Midsummer Solstice.  We continue our exploration (loved Nolet’s Silver) of various guns and I blame JP and his introduction to G&Ts in Antarctica last year. 😁

[jpalbny]

Good to have you back with us, Terry. Missed seeing you on the boards. Hope all is well with the stent. I wouldn't wish a kidney stone on anyone, but I hope you're talking about that kind of stent and not a coronary one! Not prying for details, mind you, just wishing you the best of health.

 

Yes, a year ago we were in South Georgia with daylight until late evening. Those Southern Hemisphere vacations are a real blessing when winter sets in up here. Facebook memories are absolutely killing me lately. With no timetable to return to traveling, and no escape from the winter darkness this year, we are (like everyone else) a little out of sorts.

 

Our May 28 SS cruise is approaching the 120 day threshold soon. I have not bought plane tickets, nor have we planned any kind of pre/post-cruise stay. It pains me to say that given the numbers and the current pace of vaccinating, I really think it's not realistic. So I have no motivation to think about what might happen if the cruise actually sails.

 

Thinking we'll probably have to cancel and go somewhere on our own during that time, last-minute, depending on what (if anything) is open. But we will be talking to our TA soon.

[jpalbny]

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

So, since I've raised the topic:  what brand of tonic does Silversea serve?

 

Pretty mundane stuff. Schwepps, I think. I've heard they can source Fever Tree but I have not yet asked. Maybe next time.

[zqtchas]

[lincslady]

Good to hear from you again, Terry.  We missed you.  In these strange days we all get concerned when we don't hear from someone  for a while, don't we.

 

It is 3 a.m. here, so spending a bit of night time wakefulness catching up here, might look at the BBC in a while - but then again, maybe not.  So far this winter we have not had any serious weather, which is one blessing.

 

Stay safe and well everyone.

 

Lola

[Reef Knot]

10 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

The secret to G&T connoisseur-ship is the tonic, which comprises 3/4 or so of the mixture.  A lengthy discussion of G&Ts on the Azamara board [which is dominated by Brits] turned up many preferences among Gin but unanimous agreement that the best tonic is Fever-Tree.  And Fever-Tree has helpfully put together a chart that shows which flavo(u)r of tonic goes best with which Gin:

 

Thanks Jazz, I didn't realise there was so much choice out there.

Obviously I can't judge without trying but I find gin has enough going on without the addition of more flavours, I also tend to make a 300ml bottle of tonic stretch to 2-3 gins so dont like to drown it. 

Anyway where I am we don't even have the "luxury" of Schweppes just locally bottled tonic which can be a little hit and miss at times vis a vis the carbonation (its generally fine but time to time we get a flat batch)

But duly noted and when next in a Fevertree region I'll be sure to try the different flavours.

 

As a side note I wish I'd bought Fevertree shares when they launched in 2014 at £1.34p

They were up to £41 in 2018 and even now they trade at £24. 

 

[mysty]

Greetings Coolers!

 

Today's funny.....

 

 

Have a great safe day all!

[zqtchas]

[Lvshack]

8 hours ago, Reef Knot said:

 

Thanks Jazz, I didn't realise there was so much choice out there.

Obviously I can't judge without trying but I find gin has enough going on without the addition of more flavours, I also tend to make a 300ml bottle of tonic stretch to 2-3 gins so dont like to drown it. 

Anyway where I am we don't even have the "luxury" of Schweppes just locally bottled tonic which can be a little hit and miss at times vis a vis the carbonation (its generally fine but time to time we get a flat batch)

But duly noted and when next in a Fevertree region I'll be sure to try the different flavours.

 

As a side note I wish I'd bought Fevertree shares when they launched in 2014 at £1.34p

They were up to £41 in 2018 and even now they trade at £24. 

 

Fevertree !! I live 30mins away from where it's bottled😁  it saved one of the oldest makers of  babycham ( sweet bubbles ) in Somerset .. it's the posh Schweppes here 😉

[spinnaker2]

Terry

Just ouch on many levels. Feel better!!

[TLCOhio]

15 hours ago, jpalbny said:

Good to have you back with us, Terry. Missed seeing you on the boards. Hope all is well with the stent. I wouldn't wish a kidney stone on anyone, but I hope you're talking about that kind of stent and not a coronary one! Not prying for details, mind you, just wishing you the best of health.

 

Nice to read the comments and follow-ups from J.P., lincslady and Spins. As to my newest stent, I had previously done some of that "action" on kidney stones a year or two ago.  Why do that again??  Been there, done that on kidney stone-related stents. Let's try something "new, different and more exciting"??!!    

 

Yes, this time it was the coronary type, including the need to "clean out" some of the "crud" that was floating around in these locations.  Not good or ideal, but the result was successful and the cardiologist felt his work was both productive and of a timing importance.  Fortunately between Christmas and New Years, I had a first-rate MD who was very skilled exploring with his devices.  Continuing to do very well, pretty much back to business as "usual", whatever that means these days with the various Covid-19 restrictions, etc.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

Amazon River-Caribbean 2015 adventure live/blog starting in Barbados. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, San Juan, etc.).  Now at 67,889 views:

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2157696

 

[Reef Knot]

4 hours ago, Lvshack said:

Fevertree !! I live 30mins away from where it's bottled😁  it saved one of the oldest makers of  babycham ( sweet bubbles ) in Somerset .. it's the posh Schweppes here 😉

Ahh babycham, that takes me back. The height of sophistication back in the 70's😉

[jillyf]

All the talk of Fevertree brought back memories of a 2018 train trip through Switzerland on our way to Venice.  We stopped in Brig for a few nights and our hotel overlooked the town square. There was a festival setting up and this van was kept very busy during the evening.  It was a fun night that we hadn’t expected. 

[mysty]

1 hour ago, jillyf said:

All the talk of Fevertree brought back memories of a 2018 train trip through Switzerland on our way to Venice.  We stopped in Brig for a few nights and our hotel overlooked the town square. There was a festival setting up and this van was kept very busy during the evening.  It was a fun night that we hadn’t expected. 

 

Unexpected fun nights are the very best! 😁

[Daveywavey70]

2 hours ago, mysty said:

 

Unexpected fun nights are the very best! 😁

Especially the ones where you just agree to go for one but wake up three weeks later on a barge headed for Amsterdam.

[mysty]

1 minute ago, Daveywavey70 said:

Especially the ones where you just agree to go for one but wake up three weeks later on a barge headed for Amsterdam.

 

Ooooh!   Now that sounds like great fun!  Especially these days!  I think I may need to start hanging around some loading docks! 😁

[Daveywavey70]

Just because. 

 

 

[jpalbny]

3 hours ago, mysty said:

 

Unexpected fun nights are the very best! 😁

 

Oh yes. When we picked up my Audi in Germany back in 2015, we used the free hotel night in Neckarsulm (the factory where they make the RS models) instead of Ingolstadt. We had no plans, but after checking in, we decided to wander the town and find dinner that night.

 

Little did we know, that the Ganzhornfest was in town that night! There was so much tasty street food, and lots of beer too. And German cover bands playing 1980s American rock songs in the town square! I have no idea how late we ended up staying out, but we had a great time.

 

We ate so much sausage, and Flammekuche, and pommes frites... And you CANNOT pronounce "pommes frites" like the French will say it (pom frite), or the Germans will pretend to not understand you. It must be said, "pomm-es frit-es," two syllables per word! 😄 The difference between the two languages is striking. French throws away half of the consonants and makes guttoral sounds instead of vowels. Germans, on the other hand, painstakingly enunciate every letter.

 

At one point, a German internetsite news guy interviewed us, because he was shocked beyond belief that two American tourists had come to Neckarsulm for the Ganzhornfest! There is a picture of us floating around the interwebs somewhere...

 

Ah memories - of when we had passports and knew how to use them.

[mysty]

25 minutes ago, Daveywavey70 said:

Just because. 

 

 

 

 

DW...you are a real treat!  😁

[zqtchas]

[zqtchas]

[Daveywavey70]

🙂