Drinking Holidays

You may be wondering what drinking holidays are. You may also be wondering how a “drinking holiday” is different from any other holiday! I’ll tell you…

I identify drinking holidays as days that are recognized as holidays on the calendar, don’t typically require gift giving, don’t require large meals, and often involve lots of drinking.

Please don’t take this the wrong way, because I definitely don’t intend to be offensive, but here’s my short list:

• St. Patrick’s Day
• Cinco de Mayo
• Halloween

Over the years, these are the times when I’ve enjoyed “holiday” drink specials, bar crawls, and even all-day parties! While these holidays definitely hold cultural and historical significance, folks sure do enjoy the adult beverage aspect!

Halloween just went by, but the week before that my alma mater played in a major rivalry football game. This game is such a huge tradition that people around here celebrate and party the entire week leading up to that Saturday. So, I classify the last full week of October as a drinking holiday as well!

Alright, let’s get to the drinks! Here’s what I made over the last couple of weeks.

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I like to keep several spirits on-hand so that I can make whatever my mood desires. All the drinks below are made with something in this picture.

King Rex (well, something like it)

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This is my version of a drink we had at a restaurant. I’m pretty sure they leave out ingredients on the menu, so I had to improvise. I came pretty close!

For two drinks:

1. Muddle blackberries with enough sugar to cover them
2. Juice 1 lime
3. Add Hennessy, Peach Vodka, & Peach Schnapps (2oz each)
4. Shake and pour over ice
5. Top with sparkling Moscato

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Peach Mimosas 

Easy twist on a classic. You may think messing up a mimosa is hard to do, but you’d be wrong. I’ve had some bad ones…IN RESTAURANTS! My mimosas are always a crowd pleaser because I use the following:

• A quality, pulp free orange juice (preferably not from concentrate)
• A sweet bottle of bubbly, like Spumante or Sparkling Moscato
• A splash of Peach Schnapps

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Vodka Gimlet

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I told y’all before that I enjoy vodka gimlets. I usually take the easy route and just use the bottled, sweetened lime juice…but not this time. Taking the time to make my own simple syrup and squeeze fresh lime juice really makes a difference!

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Jack & Cola

Listen…this bottle of Cola was 89 cents. No reason to spend more on the stronger name brand when I was just going to mix it with liquor! Lol Anyway, this is another classic…but adding that squeeze of lime really gives it that extra layer of flavor!

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My Mama’s Margaritas

*Record scratch* WAIT! You’ll have join my neighborhood to get the recipe to this easy, but HIGHLY acclaimed margarita! Trust me, once you make it you’ll have people begging for a pitcher!

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Whew! This has been a long post, but I hope you’re inspired to try something new or revisit a classic for your next drinking holiday or Happy Hour.