My fiancé and I just got back from a 10-day trip to Newfoundland where we were visiting his parents and exploring their part of the world. I had never been to Newfoundland but the Atlantic province had been on my travel wish-list for a long time. Luckily, I met Chris at my local curling club and we quickly fell in love and then promptly booked our summer vacation to “The Rock” as Newfoundlanders call it. We decided to do it as a road/ferry trip because we were traveling with our two small dogs. If ever you plan on traveling to Newfoundland and taking the ferry from North Sydney to Port-aux-Basques channel, then you must reserve your pet-friendly cabin well in advance because they get booked fast.
Since we were renting a small SUV, we could bring a lot of things with us to make our trip more enjoyable. I had reached out to the YETI team to see if they would be willing to send us some items for our trip. Knowing that I like my cocktails, they suggested some of their barware items. We do love a nice martini, so I was quite happy that they sent me their cocktail shaker. Not only that, they sent this amazing ice bucket that came in very handy at the spots along the way. Why use the hotel ice bucket, when you have your own that keeps the ice much longer thanks to its design?
We waited until we found the perfect spot to set up a picnic table with all the ingredients to make a perfect martini. Luckily, where we were staying in Rocky Harbour (a town in Gros Morne National Park), was just up the street from a beautiful little fishing shack that had been converted into a guest house. We brought our YETI ice bucket, shaker and wine chiller down for a little pre-dinner martini. The sun was shining and the view was spectacular. As we sipped our cocktail, I thought how lucky we were to share this little moment by the sea. It was very romantic and I am so glad that we had all the right ingredients to make our seaside drink. I brought a vintage carrying case with two decanters in it: one filled with gin and the other with vermouth. Chris had raided the fridge for ice at the inn where we were staying and I had picked up some fancy olives on our drive through Nova Scotia. So with a shake of all the ingredients, the perfect martini was made. It was even more delicious with the fresh smell of seawater in the air.
On our way back, we used our ice bucket and shaker once again at a little motel we stayed at in Edmundston. Once we were back in Quebec, we stopped at Le Détour Fromagerie to load up on cheese which we transported in the ice bucket. Not only did the cheese stay fresh, but the ice had not completely melted even after our 5hr drive to Montreal!
We’ve been using the wine chiller as well since we got back, and it really keeps your wine cool for a very long time. All in all, I can say, I really love all three of these products, but probably my favourite is the martini shaker because it is the most well-made shaker I have ever used and I used to collect shakers. The seal is excellent and the top doesn’t spill or slip off, plus the cap not only doubles as a 1oz jigger, it screws securely onto the top of the shaker to ensure that it won’t fall off while you’re shaking or pouring your cocktail. I give it a 10 out of 10 for design!
I’m curious to know, do you ever travel with your own barware? Leave me your favourite barware accessory tips or cocktail recipes below in the comments…
Thanks to YETI Canada for the barware! Shop the entire collection here: YETI.ca
