Included "complementary" drinks

[fcfc]

I am finding that the more you read on this site the more difficult it becomes to differentiate between fact and fiction. It seem there are suggestions that there may be less variety of spirits, cocktails etc available at the bars onboard than those listed as available on the Azamara website. Surely this cannot be correct. Does anyone have a definitive answer please.

 

Perhaps I should stop reading the posts on this site and learn from the upcoming actual experience

[marinaro44]

I am finding that the more you read on this site the more difficult it becomes to differentiate between fact and fiction. It seem there are suggestions that there may be less variety of spirits, cocktails etc available at the bars onboard than those listed as available on the Azamara website. Surely this cannot be correct. Does anyone have a definitive answer please.

Not sure why you would think that. You'll get what is on the list and more, if it can be made with "standard" liquor.

[uktog]

I am finding that the more you read on this site the more difficult it becomes to differentiate between fact and fiction. It seem there are suggestions that there may be less variety of spirits, cocktails etc available at the bars onboard than those listed as available on the Azamara website. Surely this cannot be correct. Does anyone have a definitive answer please.

 

Perhaps I should stop reading the posts on this site and learn from the upcoming actual experience

 

Absolutely no change in the variety from the past last month. Sometimes there has been an issue where a bartender does not know how to make something like a cosmo from the included drinks but if that happens and they say no, you just explain to them to make it with included drinks as substitutes and that solves the problem. That said, the bartenders recently have been much better briefed anyway so this knowledge gap has not been an issue for a while.

[TravelBugM]

We are just off Quest and, like our earlier cruise on Journey 2 years ago, there was no confusion regarding the included beverages.

 

https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/en-ca/booked-guests/onboard-packages/complimentary-beverages

 

In addition to the above, there are 2 white wines and 2 red wines, a rose and sparkling wine on offer each day. Sparkling water is also now included.

[Grandma Cruising]

Some people just try to make things sound different to what they are. We have always been able to find drinks we like on the included list and have never felt the need to buy a drink. What is included is exactly what is on the list on the website - very straightforward.

 

 

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[hillsprint]

My thread on my recent short cruise has a pic of the included beverages list (taken from the Pool Bar)

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2393752

[fcfc]

Without wishing to labour the point post #6 appears to prove the issue I was trying to raise. For example the list of complimentary spirits in the picture on the link in #6 is much smaller than that on the website. Just taking one example where is the Vermouth on the bar listing? Any thoughts?

[marinaro44]

Without wishing to labour the point post #6 appears to prove the issue I was trying to raise. For example the list of complimentary spirits in the picture on the link in #6 is much smaller than that on the website. Just taking one example where is the Vermouth on the bar listing? Any thoughts?

The short list in posting 6 does not include cordials, liqueurs, things like vermouth, etc. It lists only whiskeys, rum, tequila, etc. The full list is the one posted on the web site.

 

You really shouldn't be worrying about this.

[Tillylovesseabourn]

I found the inlcuded list of beverages included to be very odd. For example Pimms,which is pretty cheap, was chargeable. And the only gin not chargeable was Gordons.

I thought the drinks and cocktails on the whole were very disappointing. There were three times when i tried to have a cocktail, and all three times i could not drink it. The bar staff however pleasant just seemed very,very bad at making cocktails, generally they tasted like what one would imagine petrol tastes like! I just gave up trying.

The wines included were on the whole decent, but the sparkling wine was average at best. To be honest a decent cava or prosecco would do a far better job IMHO.

[Grandma Cruising]

If you look at the website list of included beverages you will see there are two gins (Gordons and Beefeater), 2 vodkas, 2 scotch whiskies, a bourbon, rum, tequila, sweet and dry vermouth, triple sec plus a load of other liqueurs, a long list of cocktails (I have tried Bloody Mary, Margarita and Tom Collins - all fine). I think this is a pretty good list of drinks - and they are all available.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

[elusive_23]

I would take posts you read with a grain of salt and learn from your upcoming actual experience. I had no issues ordering what was on the list provided on the website. :D

 

Also, as a side note as a bar owner I am VERY impressed by what Azamara has included for complementary alcohol and drinks. Many of those liquors and drinks are not cheap and are certainly not considered standard rail liquors. Be thankful they didn't stick us with Karkov or White Eagle vodka.

 

To comment on why Pimm's is chargeable but Gordon's isn't probably comes down to what liquor distributors they use and what kind of discount they can negotiate for large buys. This dictates a lot of what we carry in our own bar as well as pricing. Retail pricing that you see in liquor stores is different than industry pricing and mark up percentages vary greatly. Meaning Pimm's and Gordon's might be $9.99 on the shelf at your local store but the store actually paid $3.99 per bottle for Gordon's on a pallet but $6.99 per bottle for Pimm's in a case of 12.

 

Lastly, the reason why vermouth and certain liquors are not listed on the bar menu is because they are not ordered separately, they are considered a cocktail builder. For example you wouldn't order just vermouth, it's an ingredient included in the martini... which is on the complementary bar menu. Hopefully that makes sense.

 

Happy cruising!

[Tillylovesseabourn]

Grandma, yes i saw them on the list. However, i would have expected that Bombay Sapphire would have been included, as it is pretty popular now and Gordons and beefeater are pretty similar in style.

[wripro]

Bombay Sapphire is way more expensive than Gordons and considered premium. That's why it's not included.

[Tillylovesseabourn]

Wripro, you are right. I just don't consider it so nowdays.

[BBMacLaird]

I found the inlcuded list of beverages included to be very odd. For example Pimms,which is pretty cheap, was chargeable. And the only gin not chargeable was Gordons.

I thought the drinks and cocktails on the whole were very disappointing. There were three times when i tried to have a cocktail, and all three times i could not drink it. The bar staff however pleasant just seemed very,very bad at making cocktails, generally they tasted like what one would imagine petrol tastes like! I just gave up trying.

The wines included were on the whole decent, but the sparkling wine was average at best. To be honest a decent cava or prosecco would do a far better job IMHO.

 

Hello Tilly, out of curiosity which Azamara ship and sail date were you on when you found our bar staff 'very, very bad at making cocktails'?? Your list of past cruises does not reflect sailing with us?

[Tillylovesseabourn]

Bonnie, i have not updated my signature! Just off the journey disembarked on the 29th august.

I am yet to review my trip. Drinks were the only thing we took issue with, as the cocktails were particularly strong and had little taste other than neat alcohol, which for me rendered them off the menu. Which was a real shame. We did send them back and tell the wait staff, but they were certainly not to my familys taste, and we do enjoy a cocktail!

[BBMacLaird]

Bonnie, i have not updated my signature! Just off the journey disembarked on the 29th august.

I am yet to review my trip. Drinks were the only thing we took issue with, as the cocktails were particularly strong and had little taste other than neat alcohol, which for me rendered them off the menu. Which was a real shame. We did send them back and tell the wait staff, but they were certainly not to my familys taste, and we do enjoy a cocktail!

 

Hi Tilly, I'm sorry the mixed cocktails were unsatisfactory to you & your family.

I'm glad you let the ship management know. Seems like they would have replaced the unsatisfactory drinks with something you did like?

I'm relieved the rest of the cruise was to your liking! I'll watch for your review.

[Spursgirl]

Bonnie, i have not updated my signature! Just off the journey disembarked on the 29th august.

I am yet to review my trip. Drinks were the only thing we took issue with, as the cocktails were particularly strong and had little taste other than neat alcohol, which for me rendered them off the menu. Which was a real shame. We did send them back and tell the wait staff, but they were certainly not to my familys taste, and we do enjoy a cocktail!

 

What a shame the wonderful Mariano wasn't on board. He worked in Spirits Bar when we were on board in June and made the most wonderful cocktails but sadly for us (but not for him) he is on leave at the moment.

 

We rejoin the ship in two weeks and I am hoping our cocktails are perfect.

 

Glad you enjoyed the rest of your cruise. A friend of mine did the same week as you and had a fabulous time

[johnnycruise]

I was lucky to have a better bartender experience than Tilly. Beefeater gin and Finlandia vodka were included and available at every bar (although I noticed if the bartender was unaware a guest had a preference, he would default to Gordon's gin and Smirnoff vodka). The bartenders did a good job with cocktails on my cruise and always asked if I liked the drink. On the rare occasion I didn't, they would do their best to improve it or remove it immediately and offer something else.

 

That said, I did have non service related complaints about the beverages.

 

The included wines were on the whole, horrible. The sparkler was beyond poor and couldn't even be improved by adding orange juice or creme de cassis. The wines were repeated over the course of 12 days, and one day the two whites were a choice of a South African Sauvignon blanc or a South American Sauvignon blanc. Really? The Spanish rose wine never changed. It was one of the only wines that was full-bodied, and rose wine is not something I want "full-bodied." If I were blindfolded, I would have thought it was a red wine. Here we were cruising past some of the best rose producing regions in the world and we are served that heavy rioja rose for 12 straight days. (NOTE: I notice another thread since my return includes photos of included wines and the French rose that poster was served is far superior than what we received - hoping that is a permanent change.) My favorite included wine was a Chilean riesling - definitely "boutique."

 

We ended up buying the "wine lover" package (5 bottles) on the third day and it was good value ... mainly because they ran out of all the chardonnay wines on that tier by the fifth day and substituted chardonnay from the higher "wine connoisseur" tier without us even asking. The sommeliers, like almost all the crew, were wonderful. They made good suggestions and went the extra mile to serve our "package" wine in the Riedel stemware wherever we happened to be sitting throughout the ship. Note - the wine menus on the Azamara website are much more robust than what was actually provisioned. At least 25% of the website wines were unavailable on day 3 (including all of the French chardonnay wines), with that percentage approaching 40% by the end of the cruise.

 

Back to the liquors ... the beverage (by the drink) upgrade packages are deceptive and confusing, a true hodgepodge with narry a one including all types of beverages. None of the liquor packages include wine by the glass or vice-versa, or the coffee pods from the coffee bar. The wine by the glass package was the absolute worst value and the bartender told me only two people on our cruise had purchased it (~40 people purchased one of the three liquor packages). And an annoyance ... the Margarita page of the drinks menu is full of cocktails made with Patron tequila which isn't included in any of the three liquor packages - a bit sneaky.

 

On the other hand, the "up charge" for a cocktail made with a liquor from one of the three tiers was reasonable: $4.95 (premium), $5.95 (top-shelf) or $6.95 (ultimate). I bought the premium package for the last day only (that is allowed!) and found I saved about $3 over by-the-drink consumption, and that was trying hard to (over)indulge in whatever I wanted even if I really wasn't thirsty. Not something I could have kept up with for more than a couple of days, much less 12. Much better to buy your first drink or two with the premium liquor, then move on to the included list. I find Beefeater gin and Finlandia vodka quite acceptable, and the Mount Gay white rum was better than Bacardi (in my opinion). Whisk(e)y and tequila drinkers aren't so lucky, as the included options are below average.

 

So for me, included liquors were fine, up charges for higher end liquors were OK, the wine package was fairly priced for what we drank, but the included wines need considerable improvement.

 

Cheers everyone! (And to the OP, don't fret - vermouth (both dry and sweet) is included.:p)

Edited September 9, 2016 by johnnycruise

[IsanTom]

I am finding that the more you read on this site the more difficult it becomes to differentiate between fact and fiction. It seem there are suggestions that there may be less variety of spirits, cocktails etc available at the bars onboard than those listed as available on the Azamara website. Surely this cannot be correct. Does anyone have a definitive answer please.

 

Perhaps I should stop reading the posts on this site and learn from the upcoming actual experience

 

You should be very happy with the drink choices. They have enhanced the wines recently, too. It is NOT "complimentary" though, it's included in your cruise fare!

[uktog]

I think drinks are the new food - all subjective!

 

I loved all I had on Journey in August. I feel for the bar staff, when I was there I watched Pitoon make two cocktails, one for me and one for a lady beside me - identical. I loved mine, she gave him hers back asking for more liquor complaining the free stuff was cheap measures. DH had a sip of mine and thought it was quite strong! So three folks, three opinions on the same Caribbean sunset. My advice if it's not to your taste tell them, they will all mix things again if you want.

 

The bubbles are fine, OK they are not Krug.....but we have not paid for a "Krug priced' cruise

 

Again, I had no issues with the wine. I did not upgrade to a wine package, with there now being such a wide daily choice I could avoid the ones I liked less or cannot drink.

 

My advice, start with what's included, go with an open mind and maybe even a "blind tasting" mindset. You may well be very pleasantly surprised.

Edited September 9, 2016 by uktog

[excitedofharpenden]

I think drinks are the new food - all subjective!

 

I loved all I had on Journey in August. I feel for the bar staff, when I was there I watched Pitoon make two cocktails, one for me and one for a lady beside me - identical. I loved mine, she gave him hers back asking for more liquor complaining the free stuff was cheap measures. DH had a sip of mine and thought it was quite strong! So three folks, three opinions on the same Caribbean sunset. My advice if it's not to your taste tell them, they will all mix things again if you want.

 

The bubbles are fine, OK they are not Krug.....but we have not paid for a "Krug priced' cruise

 

Again, I had no issues with the wine. I did not upgrade to a wine package, with there now being such a wide daily choice I could avoid the ones I liked less or cannot drink.

 

My advice, start with what's included, go with an open mind and maybe even a "blind tasting" mindset. You may well be very pleasantly surprised.

Well said.

[Lottie A]

I think drinks are the new food - all subjective!

 

I loved all I had on Journey in August. I feel for the bar staff, when I was there I watched Pitoon make two cocktails, one for me and one for a lady beside me - identical. I loved mine, she gave him hers back asking for more liquor complaining the free stuff was cheap measures. DH had a sip of mine and thought it was quite strong! So three folks, three opinions on the same Caribbean sunset. My advice if it's not to your taste tell them, they will all mix things again if you want.

 

The bubbles are fine, OK they are not Krug.....but we have not paid for a "Krug priced' cruise

 

Again, I had no issues with the wine. I did not upgrade to a wine package, with there now being such a wide daily choice I could avoid the ones I liked less or cannot drink.

 

My advice, start with what's included, go with an open mind and maybe even a "blind tasting" mindset. You may well be very pleasantly surprised.

 

 

Well said X 2.

 

I think when making judgements on food or wine the post should always start with IMHO, as tastes are so individual and subjective.

 

So, IMHO the bar tenders do think that by pouring you an extremely generous measure of spirits, they are doing you a favour, whereas actually it can spoil the cocktail. This was the case with Lemon Drop Martini's until we coached our favourite bar tender. Now they are wonderful.

 

I found the included wine choice two weeks ago more than satisfactory and enjoyed the Billette Rose most lunch times and generally I don't like Rose much. The Reds were great too...Not vintage of course, but very palatable. I really enjoyed the sparkling selections....particularly the pink one served on the last two days....as the ship had run out of the usual sparklers! That may have possibly had something to do with me! :p

 

Will be trying them all again in two weeks...Can't wait!

 

As Ann says, go with an open mind and try what is on offer. I'm sure you will find something to your taste from the included selection. It is very rare to have the option of five included wines per day on any cruiseline.

[Spursgirl]

Well said X 2.

 

I think when making judgements on food or wine the post should always start with IMHO, as tastes are so individual and subjective.

 

So, IMHO the bar tenders do think that by pouring you an extremely generous measure of spirits, they are doing you a favour, whereas actually it can spoil the cocktail. This was the case with Lemon Drop Martini's until we coached our favourite bar tender. Now they are wonderful.

 

I found the included wine choice two weeks ago more than satisfactory and enjoyed the Billette Rose most lunch times and generally I don't like Rose much. The Reds were great too...Not vintage of course, but very palatable. I really enjoyed the sparkling selections....particularly the pink one served on the last two days....as the ship had run out of the usual sparklers! That may have possibly had something to do with me! :p

 

Will be trying them all again in two weeks...Can't wait!

 

As Ann says, go with an open mind and try what is on offer. I'm sure you will find something to your taste from the included selection. It is very rare to have the option of five included wines per day on any cruiseline.

 

What a shame our lovely, favourite bar tender is on leave when we embark in two weeks. Possibly a little coaching may therefore be in order.

 

Seriously, Azamara bar staff are only too willing to please and azamazingly soon get to know how guests like their drinks. They are completely wonderful.

[jenidallas]

Bonnie, i have not updated my signature! Just off the journey disembarked on the 29th august.

I am yet to review my trip.

 

As a fellow Seabourn aficionado who decided to try Azamara for the holidays, I'm anxiously awaiting your review! I hope you'll be able to compare the two experiences.