Raising a glass The drinks worthy of a royal toast

When Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother accepted an invitation to become patron of the “Windsor Wets” in 1931, she wrote to tell her “fellow soakers” she would be “with you until the last glass”.

“Aqua Vitae NON aqua pura,” she told them. “I remain yours in thirst, Elizabeth.”

And so she continued a tradition of royal drinkers.

Living to 101, she was known to have an extraordinary capacity for alcohol, from claret and port for lunch, to gin and tonic in the evening and champagne at dinner.

Princess Margaret enjoyed gin and whisky, livening up parties with her star turns.

In a world of camera phones, members of the modern Royal family are careful to behave themselves in public, with the Duchess of Cambridge only having a sip of alcohol in public. The Prince of Wales favours a martini in private, and has become an connoisseur on whiskies.

The Duchess of Cornwall is something of a wine expert, often visiting vineyards on overseas

tours.