Eight Bells: Winston Butler

I had lunch with Winston in the Clubhouse just before he announced his retirement. He told me that he wanted to retire quietly, without fanfare, no farewell party. I had no sense that this would be the last of many conversations over nearly fifty years. This has made his passing so soon after that an especially saddening shock to me, and to my entire family. 

I know our feelings can only be a fraction of the pain that this brings to his family, those whom he had been staying with in Florida, as well as those in St. Vincent; and I have no doubt that this shock and sorrow is shared throughout Winston’s extended Bitter End and Virgin Gorda family – colleagues, friends, neighbors, and the thousands of BEYC visitors who were delighted by his unforgettable culinary artistry and the smile that came with it.

Winston was a Bitter End icon for nearly half a century, starting when his brother, Ulrich, our first chef, convinced his teenage brother to leave the family’s farm in St. Vincent and join his small culinary team. Winston began his career as a waiter in the original BEYC Clubhouse.

 When I think about Winston in those days, the first thing that comes to mind is a dessert menu that consisted of a single item – fruit flambe’ fueled by 151-proof rum. The main attraction of the dish was the server’s dramatic delivery of flaming rum. I never will forget the extra drama that Winston added one evening, when he flambe’ed my pants along with the pineapple.

Sometime during those early years, Winston moved from the dining room to the kitchen and baking. This led to an epic coincidence. It happened that my dad was interested in baking, too, although his interest was focused on the consumption end of the process. That made a perfect partnership and for years, during the off-season, Winston polished his baking techniques and creativity at culinary institutes on both sides of the Atlantic, even the art of New York bagels. 

Winston’s contributions to Bitter End extended beyond his bread, pastries and world-famous key lime pie. He was, at heart, a farmer and in the years before Irma, he planted fruit trees around the property and established a kitchen garden that provided fresh greens and uniquely Caribbean fruits and vegetables. Although Irma destroyed that garden and most of the trees he had planted, she also made more tillable land available. This led to Winston’s post-Irma farm and nursery at the property’s south end. During the BEYC’s post-Irma rehabilitation, the farm provided fresh eggs and produce for the onsite crew and created a source of landscape plant material for Bitter End 2.0. Finally, Winston sealed his commitment to Bitter End when he brought his nephew, Augustus, on board as a protegee who would keep the baking art alive for future Bitter End visitors. 

I don’t know of any one person, other than Winston, who lived firsthand, day-by-day, Bitter End’s entire history, or any other person who was so woven into the unique experience that’s Bitter End. I am so sad that our lunch in the Clubhouse won’t have an encore, that he won’t be able to show us the farm in St. Vincent, and especially that he didn’t have more time with his family after Bitter End. Winston was a true friend to our entire family and none of us ever will forget his smile.