Be careful if showing off!
This weekend we are joining Cunard’s brand-new ship, the Queen Anne. It’s part of its maiden season and this is the voyage where the naming ceremony will take place. We have been working with Cunard for 21 years now and this is our fifth Cunard ship, as well as our fourth involved with their maiden voyage.
We are very proud of our strong association with Cunard and feel we are strong ambassadors for this fantastic company. There are certain brand names that scream out to you that they are the creme de la creme - Rolls Royce for cars, Steinway for pianos (we are both Steinway artists), and Cunard for luxury cruising. We are both passionate about hospitality at a very high level having been involved in this industry all our adult life. Kevin was the pianist for the Lanesborough Hotel, London, for many years, and Steven was the pianist for the Grosvenor House and the Dorchester hotels. The one thing that all these companies have in common is how everybody is respected - We are all cogs in a wheel. We have learned so much about food and wine from the chefs, the waiters and the sommeliers. Everyone also takes an interest in what each other does. With Cunard it is highly likely you will meet the same people working on board that you have met 10 years previous. The loyalty and dedication is that you don’t often find with other companies.
When we did the maiden voyage of the Queen Mary 2 this was the world’s biggest ship at the time. It was huge news everywhere. When we arrived into Fort Lauderdale there was a 5 mile radius where no one could get close to the ship unless authorised. The world’s press came onboard to, what is known in the business as, a “cruise to nowhere”. What happens is every agent and journalist of note is invited to enjoy a big party as the ship is shown off for a night as it sails off for a few miles out to sea. The decor inside the Queen Mary 2 is art deco. The champagne lounge on the third deck was a then dedicated Verve Cliquot venue which opened up into the chart room where canapés and champagne was being served at the gallon. In the corner a world class jazz trio was playing and much of the party congregated. Most of the drinks being served were complimentary but if you wanted something a bit more special you then had to pay.
In the first year of the Queen Mary 2 they had an acappella group working on the ship called Royal Flush that would appear at various intervals during any evening all around the ship. It was one of those magical extras that Cunard really promoted. Once they had finished they came to join us and one of them had decided to show off and bought himself a Louis XIII Cognac. It had cost him $400 for a single shot. Instead of just enjoying the drink and the occasion he’d taken upon himself to go round shoving it under everyone’s noses saying how marvellous it was. This was fine the first time he did this but after a while it got tedious. Steven eventually decided to ask him about this Cognac and the guy seemed quite chuffed that Steven had taken more of an interest in this rather expensive aperitif than anyone else had. He then offered Steven to take a sip. Steven politely took up his offer then proceeded to neck the entire contents in one gulp. The guy stood there horrified as everyone else howled with laughter. Steven later asked if I, Kevin, was annoyed and I said the only thing I was annoyed about was I didn’t have the guts to do what Steven had done. I think everyone else felt the same way. We never did see that guy again.
A great connoisseur of alcohol beverages and owner of the drinks magazine, Alan Chalmers, once said good quality drinks such as wine and Cognac are to be enjoyed and not saved. Perhaps a little slower than Steven’s example.
