Let the night be gin.

Much like the little black dress, a good gin is a classic to be relied upon. Yet it’s a spirit that seems to be forever evolving, reinventing itself in newer, fresher, and bolder flavours, season after season.

Adapted from the 16th-century Genever, gin was originally prescribed as a medicine in Belgium and said to be used by English soldiers to calm their nerves during the Thirty Years’ War. It soon made its way to London, with sweeter ‘Old Tom’ gins the fashion until the 1830s, and more juniper-heavy ‘London Dry’ gins becoming popular thereafter.

At our midships bar, Gin & Fizz, more than 40 gin varieties have made it onto the menu, organised into traditional, herbaceous, citrus, spice, floral, juniper and ‘adventurous’ flavours. Each one is available as a martini or in a ‘Copa de Balon’ and paired with a tonic and signature garnish that perfectly complements the gin’s botanical properties.

The selection is almost as well travelled as our ships, with offerings from the likes of Australia, Japan, Germany, New Zealand, Belgium, Italy and the U.S.A., as well as from around the UK. Here’s a look at a few of our bartenders’ favourites on the menu and the pairings we recommend.

Along with our curated gins from around the world, a visit to Gin & Fizz also gives you the chance to savour a taste of three small-batch gins created exclusively for Cunard. Named after our ships, Queen Elizabeth, Queen Victoria and Queen Mary 2, each unique gin is copper-distilled in Edinburgh in partnership with Pickering's, and infused with ingredients inspired by our itineraries.

Here’s a little insight into each gin’s flavour profile and the destinations that inspired them.

In a rather poignant nod to our heritage, the co-founder of Pickering's Gin just so happens to be the great-nephew of Cunard Captain George Gibbons, so we couldn’t have chosen a better distillery to be the home of our 3 Queens Gin.

Method.

1. Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Grease and line base and sides of a 900g (2lb) loaf tin with baking parchment. In a large bowl beat butter and sugar with a handheld electric whisk until light and fluffy – about 5 minutes.

2. Gradually add the eggs, beating well after each addition.

3. Fold in the flour, baking powder and lime zest, followed by the gin. Spoon into the prepared tin and bake for 45min or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

4. Meanwhile, make the sugar syrup: gently heat the caster sugar and tonic water in a small pan, stirring often, until the sugar dissolves. Turn up the heat and boil for 1min. Spoon 2tbsp of the syrup into a small bowl and mix in 2tbsp of the gin (this mixture will then be used to soak the loaf later). Set pan of remaining syrup aside.

5. As soon as the loaf comes out of the oven, poke holes into the top with a skewer and drizzle over the reserved syrup/gin mixture. Cool loaf on a wire rack.

6. To make the candied lime slices reheat the remaining sugar syrup in its pan until boiling, then add the lime slices. Simmer for 5-10 min until the slices are translucent. Lift out slices with a slotted spoon on to baking parchment, then sprinkle both sides of the lime slices liberally with caster sugar. Leave to dry.

7. Make the icing by mixing the icing sugar with the remaining 1½ tbsp gin added to syrup. Remove cooled loaf from tin, transfer to a board and peel off parchment. Pour over icing and decorate with the dried candied lime slices. Leave the cake to set before serving.