King Charles was described by Hollywood director Paul Feig as a “martini guy”.
The 60-year-old filmmaker, known for his comedies like ‘Bridesmaids’, has written a book called ‘Cocktail Time!’ with drink recipes and anecdotes about well-known personalities.
Speaking to the Sunday Times about the tome, Paul revealed he once made a martini for Charles, 73, when the king was still the Prince of Wales.
“We are good friends with Santa Montefiore the novelist and her husband Simon Sebag [Montefiore]who is close friends with Charles,” he said.
“He’s known him for ages so they arranged my 60th tea for me at Highgrove with Prince Charles.”
King Charles (pictured in 2018 when he was Prince of Wales) enjoys a martini while visiting a Northumberland brewery
Hollywood director Paul Feig (pictured) has been open about making a martini for King Charles, describing the monarch as “a martini guy.”
At that gathering he made the king a drink and added: “If I made a King Charles cocktail? I put Dubonnet there as a tribute to his mother and grandmother. And definitely gin. So I would make a gin and dubonnet. But Charles is a martini guy and I make good martinis. It’s my super power.’
The director and writer, who owns his own brand of gin called Artingstall, also shared some of his top tips for making the most of a party.
Among them, he recommended having a drink or two and described alcohol as a “social lubricant.”
He also suggested hanging out with women, saying that female comedy is generally “not as aggressive” as male comedy.
If all else fails, he recommends having a fake mustache on hand, which he calls “foolproof” and says “everyone starts laughing” when you don one.
And he suggested that hosts “should suit the drinks to the people,” like, he said, King Charles with martinis.
Royal observers may have already noted that the King has a penchant for a martini, having enjoyed one of the drinks at 11am during a trip to a gin distillery in Moorland in 2018 as part of a two-day visit to Northumberland.
The King appeared in good spirits as he sampled Hepple Gin during his visit to Moorland Spirit Company’s Morpeth distillery in 2018
The king reportedly enjoyed the drink “stirred, not shaken” during a two-day visit to Northumberland.
Charles was served a decent gin just after 11am to give him a clear taste of the award-winning spirit, and then he was presented with the cocktail from Sir Walter Riddell’s estate in Hepple, Coquetdale.
The native conifers grown within walking distance of the distillery give the gin its distinctive flavor as well as locally grown botanicals.
Charles drank the martini stirred, not shaken.
Meanwhile, Dubonnet, which Paul Feig said he would use in a drink for the King, was a favorite of the late Queen, as was her mother – a sweet, fortified wine blended with herbs, spices and quinine.
The Queen (pictured during a video call in 2021) is said to have been very fond of Dubonnet, a sweet, fortified wine blended with herbs, spices and quinine
Queen Elizabeth’s favorite cocktail is said to be one part gin and two parts Dubonnet, poured over two ice cubes and topped with a lemon wedge.
At its peak in the 1960s and 1970s, 20 million bottles of Dubonnet were sold worldwide each year, thanks to the less-than-royal “Do ‘ave a Dubonnet” advertising slogan.
It fell out of fashion with audiences, but has made a comeback in recent years.
Around 500,000 bottles of Dubonnet were sold worldwide in 2020, up from 350,000 in the previous 12 months.
The UK is the largest market, but is also selling well in Canada, Australia, France and, surprisingly, Colombia.