James Pimm
Encyclopedia
James Pimm was the son of tenant farmers who created the gin-based cocktail known as Pimm's
.
Pimm was born and raised in Newnham
, Kent
. In his early 20s he moved to London where he set up as a shellfish monger, the first step to embarking on a career in catering. He opened his first oyster bar in 1823 and, within 10 years, was running a chain of five restaurants patronished by city gents from the Bank of England, Lloyds of London and the Stock Exchange.
Pimm devised the cocktail to accompany the shellfish and the recipe was a closely guarded secret then and remains so to this day — known only to six people in the company. The owners now are the Diageo
plc group.
Pimm was buried at East Peckham
, Kent.
Pimm's
Pimm's is a brand of fruit cups, but may also be considered a liqueur. It was first produced in 1823 by James Pimm and owned by Diageo since 2006. Its most popular product is Pimm's No. 1 Cup.-History:...
.
Pimm was born and raised in Newnham
Newnham, Kent
Newnham is a village in the Syndale valley in Kent, England, in the administrative borough of Swale near the medieval market town of Faversham.- History :Newnham has existed as a community of dwellings and work-units for at least 1,000 years...
, Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. In his early 20s he moved to London where he set up as a shellfish monger, the first step to embarking on a career in catering. He opened his first oyster bar in 1823 and, within 10 years, was running a chain of five restaurants patronished by city gents from the Bank of England, Lloyds of London and the Stock Exchange.
Pimm devised the cocktail to accompany the shellfish and the recipe was a closely guarded secret then and remains so to this day — known only to six people in the company. The owners now are the Diageo
Diageo
Diageo plc is a global alcoholic beverages company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest producer of spirits and a major producer of beer and wine....
plc group.
Pimm was buried at East Peckham
East Peckham
East Peckham is a village in Kent, England, made up of nine hamlets and situated about east of Tonbridge on the River Medway. It was the centre for the hop growing industry in Kent and is still home to the Hop Farm which has the world's largest collection of Oast Houses.-History:The Domesday entry...
, Kent.
Sources
- How a farmer’s son invented taste of the social summer, by Mark Gardner, Faversham Times, 25 June 2005