For those not familiar with the Vintage Room it is a dining venue that pares selected wines course-by-course that are served in an intimate venue. One can sign up for the Vintage Room and attend with other guests,or one could book what is known as an exclusive Vintage Room and determine who will be attending. There is a maximum number of people who can attend, but you can invite less to attend. While the price is the same no matter how many people attend, with less people pricier wines are served.
As background to last night, one of the reasons we are staying on board Serenity for two voyages beyond the World Cruise is to celebrate a special milestone Birthday for Anne Marie. Keith planned last night's event because those whom Keith invited will not be on that sailing. Keith invited some selected officers along with a couple of staff to join us at the Vintage Room. Although he planned this event last Fall, he didn't tell Anne Marie about it until around ten days ago, with an invitation that he made which included the date and time of a dinner without a specific location mentioned, and with the words which was the theme of the night.
They are: Celebrating Love, Life, Health & Happiness
Yesterday morning he gave Anne Marie a second invitation which included the dining venue and once again highlighting the following.
"Celebrating Love, Life, Health, & Happiness
Including the two of us, we had nine people attending.
Once we arrived to the Vintage Room, Anne Marie saw the officers and senior staff who Keith had invited. These are people who are very dear to us.
Seated from L-R: Crystal Society Hostess Alissa, Anne Marie, Keith & World Cruise Hostess Stacey.
Standing from L-R: Food & Beverage Manager Walter, Shore Excursion Manager Daniel, Cruise Sales Consultant Daniele, Hotel Director Josef & Cruise Director Gary.
Keith had coordinated the menu with Head Sommelier Bart Dufor a few weeks ago. In turn, Bart coordinated all of this with the Executive Chef, Frantz.Weiss.
Keith always looks to Bart to select the wine/champagne and we both think that Bart is incredible. Before each wine is served, Bart talks about not only the wine, but the winemaker and what makes the wine unique/special, and he also provides other relevant information. Bart also has a great way of explaining all of this so that one can easily understand what he is talking about no matter how little knowledge they have about wine. In addition, no matter how elementary the question is, Bart does an excellent job of answering each and every question without one feeling "dumb" for asking an elementary question. Our first time at the Vintage Room was in October of 2010 on-board Crystal Serenity when Bart was on that voyage and we loved it so much we have participated in a Vintage Room, on average, two to three times per year since that very first Vintage Room.
Keith made a toast to Anne Marie and to all of our guests.
The menu featured the following cuisine:
Lobster Ceviche with Vanilla Roasted Fennel & White Gazpacho
Open Faced Ravioli with Dover Sole, Green Peas, Morels, Shellfish Reduction & Curry Oil
Porcine Dusted Sea Bass with Fave Bean Puree, Lobster-Tomato Syrup
Grilled Filet Mignon with Gorgonzola Cheese with Red Wine Sauce, Wild Mushrooms, Smothered Shallots
Selection of Artisanal Cheeses with Apricot Confit
Lemon Martini with Cookie Crust and Buttermilk Ice Cream
Homemade Vintage Room Chocolate Pralines
When this course of Grilled Filet Mignon with Gorgonzola Cheese with Red Wine Sauce, Wild Mushrooms, Smothered Shallots was placed on the table one could smell the wonderful aroma coming from the Gorgonzola Cheese and it was indeed delicious.
The Lemon Martini with Cookie Crust and Buttermilk Ice Cream was a "wow" dessert. Keith only had half of it because it was so delicious so he thought that stopping halfway through was a wise decision.
As to the champagne/wine, we enjoyed:
Laurent Perrier Grand Siecle Grand Curvee, Brut Reims NV (NOTE: One of the nicest Champagne's we have ever had)
Pur Sang, Didier Daguenau, Saint Andelin, Loirve Valley 2010
(NOTE: This was a very unique Sauvignon Blanc in terms of its taste. Normally, Anne Marie does not care for the ones that typically are very citrus tasting and this one did not have a hint of citrus and was very light)
Pinot Noir, Yealand Estate, Winemakers Reserve, Otago, New Zealand 2013 (NOTE: We both enjoyed this wine)
Chateau Cos D'Estournel, Second Growth, Saint - Estephe, Bordeaux 2000 (NOTE: Anne Marie is normally not big on this type of wine but did enjoy it and Keith loved it)
Trockenbeerenauslese, Crystal Cruises Cuvee, Kracher, Burgenland, Austria 2003
If that was not enough, Keith had Bart arrange a cake for Anne Marie with the words Love, Life, Health & Happiness inscribed on top of the Cake.
We had an absolutely wonderful evening filled with outstanding cuisine, wine, service along with the ambiance of the Vintage Room along with a lot of fantastic conversation and lots of laughs. This was one of those very special evening's which we will will remember for the rest of our lives.
The good news is that before we went to sleep last evening we set the clocks back one hour as we are sailing to yet another new time zone.
We both slept very well s we are sailing to our next port of call.
As usual, Keith was up first and he worked out in the Fitness Center before he went to the Lido Cafe for coffee and to read and write.
Anne Marie woke early and walked for an hour around the ship.
We then watched the morning show as we had our breakfast.
Next on the "agenda" for Keith was getting a haircut.
After Keith's haircut he attended the first lecture of the day. Today featured three very interesting lectures.
First up was Bill Toone who spoke bout the Gorillas in our
midst. He spoke about the Batwa
Pygmies, mountain gorillas and the very unique forest that they were destined
to share.
Later in the morning destination lecturer Ken Rees, spoke
about the Zulu Country. This
included our stories of our upcoming ports in Richard’s Bay, Durban and Port
Elizabeth.
In the afternoon, Clem Sunter spoke about the history of
scenario planning and how it was used to transform the conversation in
South Africa in the late 1980s.
Anne Marie attended the Gentle Yoga Class as she does on most sea days and shortly after the class attended she attended the Knitting Class. Anne Marie is working on knitting socks and since this is her first time knitting socks it has taken her a bit longer as she is learning how to do this. She continues to have a lot of fun with the knitting and crocheting.
Keith also found time to go back to the Fitness Center for an additional workout. With the food from last evening at The Vintage Room, Keith thought another workout was in order.
Today also featured the Grand Gala Buffet. Although we didn't partake in the buffet for lunch, Keith took some photos as they were setting it up.
Today also featured the Grand Gala Buffet. Although we didn't partake in the buffet for lunch, Keith took some photos as they were setting it up.
Executive Pastry Chef Harald Neufang
The morning went by quickly and before we knew it, we went to lunch at the Lido Cafe and as usual we each had a salad entree. We might not have mentioned this before but for those of you who have not sailed Crystal Cruises at 12:00 Noon Captain Giske makes an announcement from the bridge. During the announcement he updates everyone on the present location of Serenity, provides other facts such as ocean depth and outside temperature, the current speed and remaining miles to our next port of call and the current forecast for the rest of the day and the next port of call.
In the afternoon, it was Paddle Tennis for Keith and Anne Marie walked for an hour outside the ship.
Anne Marie spent the remainder of the afternoon knitting and Keith met up with dear friend Bob.
"Do not follow where the past may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." - Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Keith & Anne Marie
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