It seems reasonable that he may have had some utensils made from the newly available aluminum.
Yes, the new and exotic material would certainly impress the political dignitaries of the age.
Here in the United States, we have our own historical trivia regarding this marvelous metal:
A History of the Aluminum Cap of the Washington Monument
Excerpt:
Author's Note: When dealing with historical numbers involving monetary units, it is well to give the reader a perspective about the relationship to current times; it is insufficient to use the financial term inflation adjusted. The author prefers to compare the 1884 price of aluminum of $1 per ounce ($16 per pound) to the fact that in 1884 the wage of a laborer on the Washington Monument was $1 per day, and the workday was typically 10 hours or greater in length. Thus, the cost of one ounce of aluminum was equivalent to a full day's work. The highest skilled craftsman on the monument project was paid $2 per day.
Aluminum was very expensive stuff back then.
Nowadays, it's a challenge just to get homeless people and vagrants to pick up aluminum cans from the litter and turn 'em in for cash.
Sorry bout that. Responded before reading all the way down.