King Charles successfully poured a “perfect” pint of Guinness on a Christmas visit to a new brewery in London’s Covent Garden, where he tasted his pint-pulling efforts.
This was his first public visit since the King’s video message revealing “good news” about the positive progress of his cancer treatment – and he seemed to be really enjoying the moment.
The King surprised some shoppers outside the event, wishing them a “Merry Christmas” and shaking hands in an impromptu walkabout in the rain.
The King, who seemed in festive form, joked with carol singers that they must be “moonlighting from the Royal Opera House” and teased reporters that they were not getting to test the drinks on display.
The King was opening the Guinness Open Gate Brewery, a £73m investment which will be a new London visitor attraction as well as producing a range of beers.
There was a lesson in how to pour a pint, with the King shown how to tilt the glass to 45 degrees, and then to leave it to settle for between 60 to 70 seconds, which he was told allowed 300 million bubbles to rise inside the glass.
It was not clear who had ever counted them, but the King was ready to raise a glass to Christmas and perhaps, he might have been thinking about “good health” in a more personal way.
His pint-pulling trainer, Leo Ravina, said he had poured a “perfect pint”.
“If you say so,” replied the King, who wiped away a foamy Guinness moustache.
The King seemed less convinced by another piece of hi-tech boozing, where he was shown how an image could be printed, using beetroot or carrot juice, on to the beer’s surface.
Although as monarch, he had to avoid sharing his point (or in this case pint) of view.
There was also no mention of the social media fad of “splitting the G”, where drinkers try to reach a certain point on a pint glass.
But the King seemed to enjoy some of the less usual beers on offer, including one with an apricot flavour.
This tasting session was in the 232 Bar, named after the temperature at which the barley is roasted to get the distinctive flavour.
Guinness also gave the King a tour of the inner workings of the beer-making process.
Despite the rain, the King seemed determined to go outside, where crowds appeared taken aback to see this unexpected visitor and held up their phones in the drizzle. He chatted to a couple about keeping their baby warm in the downpour.
There was also a tour of a Christmas-themed food market.
And among the guests was movie director Gurinder Chadha, who made Bend It Like Beckham and has now launched a modern version of A Christmas Carol, called Christmas Karma.
It has a message about compassion and multicultural communities, and Ms Chadha said the King had asked for a copy of the film to watch at Christmas in Sandringham.
The King was also introduced to young people who were being trained for the hospitality industry.
Nik Jhangiani of Guinness’s parent company Diageo welcomed the seasonal royal visit: “Pubs and restaurants are the heartbeat of the hospitality sector and this is a wonderful show of support for the industry.”
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