King Charles lll

Coronation

Another bank holiday weekend and this time in honour of King Charles lll. Yes, he is formally been crowned King of England, Scotland, Wales, New Zealand and a few more places, whether they like it or not.

We knew this would be a real spectacle, but this was Britain at its best, with all its pomp on ceremony, we really do know how to put on a show. Golden carriages, weighty robes of state and jewel-encrusted crowns.

It's hardly surprising there were so many arcane traditions, in a ceremony that dates back 1,000 years at Westminster Abbey. But who knew, until Coronation Day, that swords have names?

The Sword of State and the Sword of Offering, the Sword of Temporal Justice, the Sword of Spiritual Justice, and the Sword of Mercy. Princess Anne followed the gold carriage on a black horse and is now known as the Gold-Stick-in-Waiting. Does remind me of the series, Game of Thrones.

The protesters were a little over the top and our bobbies on the beat sorted them out rather smartly.

If you do not approve, stay at home, many wanted to just be part of this once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Susan and some friends are having afternoon tea at The Priory Hotel in Wareham. I do believe Susan is going for the Priory ‘Ritzy’ Tea, which is a lavish affair with Finger Sandwiches, Home Made Cakes and Scones, Pot of your choice of Hoogly Tea, Jam and Clotted Cream. Quite reasonable at £27.50 per person.

Susan has taken much thought into what to wear and has decided on smart denim jeans, a white t-shirt and a beige cotton jacket with a floral scarf. The River Frome is not too shabby, not the Rhine but has the odd river ferry from Wareham to Poole harbour. We explored the gardens a few years ago and it was a feature in one of my blogs. I have included some of the images I captured on the day.

Come to think of it, it was quite a busy day for us as we had breakfast with the Middle Smiths and the Mafia at Durlston Castle and then had to make our way from Swanage to Wareham. Durlston Castle has an incredible walk from the Big Bang to the present time, charting the rise and fall of the dinosaurs and when man first started walking. It is on the Jurassic coast, where many a fossil has been found.

New BBQ

The time has finally arrived to purchase a new BBQ. Our trusty old one has turned into a rust trap with the fear of the coals escaping onto the ground. Funny story with the old one, we originally gave it to Gary as a present but his neighbours in the flats complained that the smoke was coming into their lounge. Fair comment I suppose, maybe just close your windows.

Back to the BBQ, Michael and I picked the Firepit Hero ll, a charcoal BBQ from the extensive range at Tesco, other supermarkets also stock them. It claimed to be able to grill, bake and smoke, just what we needed for our Friday burger nights. In a fitting tribute to Gary’s old BBQ, we invited Gary to do the honours at the inaugural BBQ.

He did rate it as one of the best BBQs he has cooked on and we all marvelled at the very smart temperature gauge and the bottle opener. The chimney is for smoking your choice of meat.

A great new addition to our cooking options and that brings me to the fine wine we had to accompany the good food. Barefoot Merlot, yes that unassuming red wine from California did us pride on that memorable evening.

Do you know what “Merlot” means? The word Merlot is French for “the little blackbird.”

What does Merlot taste like?

Merlot is known as the chameleon of wine because it adapts to many climates. Typically, Merlot is a dry, medium- to full-bodied wine with moderate acidity, moderate to high alcohol, and soft but present tannins. This is great if you enjoy red wine that is not over-aged and resembles something like classroom ink. Personally, I enjoy merlot from California but I am open to any from Australia or New Zealand. I expect my wines to have a fruity note leaning towards the humble grape, other than that, let it be an easy-drinking wine without too much fuss.