Skip to main content

Rolls-Royce launches a cocktail hamper for the money-to-burn crowd

Rolls-Royce has just announced a luxuriously designed limited-edition Cocktail Hamper, all ready to serve up enough booze to help you forget how much you paid for it.

At £26,000 ($39,000) a pop, this unique package is aimed squarely at the money-to-burn crowd, though with only 15 units available, interested folks will have to act fast to secure one.

So what’s Rolls-Royce offering for that kind of money? Well, as its name so clearly suggests, the hamper contains everything you need to knock together a round of tasty, and possibly very potent, drinks. There’s even a recipe book included should you be looking for inspiration.

The “meticulously hand-crafted” cabinet took eight weeks to build, Rolls-Royce says, and comprises aluminum, American walnut wood, and “the finest natural grain leather that adorns the interior of some Rolls-Royce motor cars.”

Rolls-Royce-Cocktail-Hamper-005
Image used with permission by copyright holder

The hamper’s upper tier holds a shaker, decanters, platinum-rimmed tumblers, and a selection of smaller utensils including a muddler finished in American walnut and a strainer engraved with the ‘RR’ monogram. In the lower section you’ll find an ice bucket, bottle opener, ice tongs, a glass serving tray, fine cotton napkins, a chopping board, and dishes for canapés. Oh, and it comes with straws, too.

The details are certainly impressive. Take its paring knife, for example, which is magnetically housed in a recess “thereby ensuring it is stored and transported in safety and without disturbance.”

As for the tumblers, they’re the work of “Europe’s most revered glassmaker,” and took “one month to complete owing to the utilisation of a time-honoured technique that sees the glass blown into beech wood moulds, guaranteeing an exceptionally smooth surface.”

The marketing spiel continues: “The presence of the human hand at every stage of the production process ensures no two glasses are the same.” That’s something I used to say about my half-assed pottery attempts as a child, though clearly these particular artisans have the skill and experience to create something actually worth keeping.

Rolls-Royce’s marketing team is pitching the kit at those “who wish to relax and enjoy something a little beyond the traditional glass of champagne.”

If you’re interested in Rolls-Royce’s Cocktail Hamper but it’s a little out of your price range, there’s always Bentley’s Mulliner alternative offering, available for a mere £21,000 ($31,500).

Trevor Mogg
Contributing Editor
Not so many moons ago, Trevor moved from one tea-loving island nation that drives on the left (Britain) to another (Japan)…
Scout Traveler and Scout Terra forge a new path for EVs
Scout Traveler and Scout Terra.

Electric vehicles are inseparable from newness, whether it’s new tech, new designs, or new companies like Rivian, Lucid, and Tesla. But the Volkswagen Group’s new EV-only brand also relies heavily on the past.

Unveiled Thursday, the Scout Traveler electric SUV and Scout Terra electric pickup truck are modern interpretations of the classic International Harvester Scout. Manufactured from 1961 to 1980, the original Scout helped popularize the idea of the rugged, off-road-capable utility vehicle, setting the stage for modern SUVs.

Read more
Robotaxi aside, a $25,000 EV would be pointless, Tesla CEO says
Blue Tesla Model 3 Highland on the road

Enthusiasts expecting to one day put their hands on the steering wheel of a $25,000 Tesla EV may feel like they’ve been taken for a ride.
CEO Elon Musk has just put a serious damper on those expectations, saying that outside of the driverless Robotaxi recently unveiled by Tesla, a regular $25,000 model would be “pointless” and “silly.”
During a conference call with investors, Musk was asked to clarify whether such a model was in the works.
"Basically, having a regular $25K model is pointless,” Musk said. “It would be silly. It would be completely at odds with what we believe." Tesla, Musk continued, has “been very clear that the future is autonomous.”
On October 10, Tesla unveiled its much-awaited robotaxi, called the Cybercab, an autonomous-driving EV with no steering wheel or pedals. The company also unveiled the Robovan, a much larger autonomous vehicle expected to carry people or goods.
The automaker said the Cybercab is expected to be produced in 2026 and cost $30,000. Musk, meanwhile, said that it would be a $25,000 car without specifying if that price tag included federal tax credits.
Tesla’s ambiguity about an affordable entry-level model has been going on for years. In 2020, Musk signaled that a $25,000 Tesla would arrive within three years. It was later reported that Tesla had ditched the idea, instead favoring the development of a robotaxi.
Language within Tesla’s latest financial report still hints that new affordable Tesla models are on the way. But Musk’s latest comments are putting a floor on just how affordable these would be. So far, Tesla’s Model 3 Rear-Wheel-Drive remains the company’s cheapest model, with a base price of $38,990.
Some rival EV makers, meanwhile, are entering the affordable space more aggressively in the U.S.
General Motors has already put out its Chevy Equinox EV at a price of $27,500, including federal tax credits. Volkswagen America says it plans to release an under-$35,000 EV in the U.S. by 2027.

Read more
Stellantis’ 2027 Dodge Charger Daytona might feature solid-state battery tech
Front three quarter view of the 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona sedan.

The battle to use cheaper, more efficient, and safer EV batteries is heating up among automakers. At the heart of this battle, the development of solid-state battery technology, an alternative to highly flammable and costly lithium batteries, is garnering more and more attention.For proof, Stellantis, the world’s fourth-largest automaker, is betting on the technology for its next generation of electric vehicles. The Netherlands-based company announced that it will launch a demonstration fleet of Dodge Charger Daytona EVs that will feature solid-state battery tech made by U.S. startup Factorial.The demo fleet, expected to launch by 2026, will provide a real-world assessment of Factorial’s technology. Factorial has been partnering with Stellantis since 2021 and is also partnering with the likes of Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz and Hyundai.Besides Dodge, the technology would eventually be deployed on the Stellantis STLA Large multi-energy platform, which includes brands such as Jeep, Chrysler, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati.Stellantis said that the integration of solid-state battery technology will yield “improved performance, longer driving ranges, and faster charging times in the coming years.”Factorial, meanwhile, says its technology provides higher energy density, reduced weight, improved performance, and the potential for further reduction in total vehicle cost over time. Stellantis, Daimler, and Hyundai aren’t the only ones to bet on solid-state battery tech. Toyota, the largest automaker in the world, has heavily invested in the technology. It also created a coalition with Nissan and Panasonic to boost its production in Japan. So far, making solid-state batteries has remained an expensive endeavor. But steps such as the Stellantis demo fleet and production at scale by the likes of Factorial are expected to improve manufacturing processes and costs over time.Other automakers, meanwhile, are working on ways to improve lithium batteries. Volkswagen, for one, is developing its own unified battery cell in several European plants as well as one plant in Ontario, Canada.

Read more