Introduction

Drinking is very important at Downton. At least three types of wine are served at every upstairs dinner, plus port for the gentlemen after it. There’s alcoholic punch at parties, plenty of Champagne, and, as the years go by, the gradual adoption of the cocktail. Mixed drinks are first mentioned in season 2, and it takes until the last season for one of the family—in this case Henry Talbot—to wield a cocktail shaker, but they lurk in the background of many a party. Edith, in particular, who, after Gregson leaves her his flat, lives a more modern life than her sisters as a bachelorette, is a serial quaffer of Champagne, G&Ts, and cocktails at various venues across London. Rose, representing a slightly younger and cooler dynamic than most of the rest of the family, is also no stranger to cocktails, which are regarded as decidedly “fast” by most others.