Our last cocktail is the small-but-mighty Tip Top Bee’s Knees. The teeny-tiny can packs a punch with its alcohol content, but is it worth the price? A surprise phone call turns into a surprise guest with tearful results.

We continue phoning it in by switching to tequila with the Two Chicks Tequila Grapefruit Cocktail Sparkling Pomona. Does the drink live up to the beautiful White Lotus-esque packaging?

It’s summer, and we’re phoning it in with canned cocktails. We start the night off with an island escape, trying the Cutwater Tiki Rum Mai Tai. Diana also surprises the crew with a special gift that you are going to want to steal for yourself.

• First trips to Vegas
• Diana Cocktail - Vegas Vesper
• Favorite hotels
• Favorite games
• Sphere
• Shows in Vegas
• Valley of Fire
• Hoover Dam
• Carli make a drink from her last trip?
• Tickets to clubs for college spring breakers
• Movies set in Vegas

Viva Las Vegas

• First trips to Vegas
• Diana Cocktail - Vegas Vesper
• Favorite hotels
• Favorite games
• Sphere
• Shows in Vegas
• Valley of Fire
• Hoover Dam
• Carli make a drink from her last trip?
• Tickets to clubs for college spring breakers
• Movies set in Vegas

Episode 13 - Taking on the Tailgate - Bloody Mary, Mimosa, Twisted Tea

We talk about our favorite tailgating experiences while mixing up some of our favorite pre-game drinks. Carli experiments with some suspicious ingredients to make her favorite Bloody Marys. (Spoiler alert - we all survived.) Diana sweetens things up with some sparkly Mimosas and tries a crowd-sourced recipe for Twisted Tea.

Bloody Mary

Ingredients

• 4 oz Mr & Mrs T® Original Bloody Mary Mix
• 1 oz Vodka
• 1 cup ice
• Celery stalk
• Green olives

Preparation

• Pour vodka over ice in a tall glass
• Add bloody mary mix
• Stir and then add celery stalk and olives to garnish

Mimosa

Ingredients

• Champagne or Prosecco
• Orange Juice

Preparation

• Pour Champagne or Prosecco in a champagne flute
• Add a splash of Orange Juice

Twisted Tea

Ingredients

• Deep Eddy Lemon Vodka
• Sweet Tea
• Torani Syrups in fruit flavors for variations

Preparation

• Add ice to a glass.
• Fill halfway with Sweet Tea
• Add one shot of Deep Eddy Lemon Vodka. Adjust to taste.
• Add flavored syrups as desired.
• For a variation, use Deep Eddy Sweet Tea Vodka and Lemonade.

Episode 12 - Breaking the Bourbon Trail, Part II - Burnt Sugar Old Fashioned

It’s back to the Bourbon Trail as Carli serves up a Burnt Sugar Old Fashioned while we discuss how to plan a Bourbon Trail Trip. We also share some memories while debating whether to pedal wagon or not to pedal wagon and the races of the Triple Crown.

Distilleries

• Castle and Key
• Buffalo Trace
• Woodford Reserve
• Rabbit Hole
• Angels Envy
• Four Roses
• Whistle Pig

Burnt Sugar Old Fashioned

Episode 11 - Breaking the Bourbon Trail, Part I - St. Elmo Old Fashioned and WR Classic Old Fashioned

Carli and Diana head to Kentucky to explore the distilleries on the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. We start off with the ready-to-pour St. Elmo Old Fashioned and see how it compares to the hand-crafted Woodford Reserve Classic Old Fashioned.

Distilleries

• Woodford Reserve
• Maker’s Mark
• Bulleit
• Castle and Key
• Buffalo Trace
• Rabbit Hole

Woodford Reserve (WR) Classic Old Fashioned

Ingredients

• 2 oz WR Kentucky Straight Bourbon
• .5 oz Demerara Simple Syrup
• 3 dashes WR Aromatic Bitters
• 2 dashes WR Orange Bitters
• Orange Peel
• Luxardo Maraschino Cherries

Preparation

• Add ingredients to a mixing glass with ice.
• Stir for 30 - 40 seconds.
• Strain into a serving glass.
• Garnish with a lightly expressed orange peel and a luxardo maraschino cherry.

Episode 9 - Margaritas in Mexico, Part II - Vodka Margarita

What to do when you’re out of tequila? You make a Vodka Margarita! Carli makes this margarita variation and shares how a little Squirt can make a pool margarita magical. Find out what wins in a taste test of Grand Marnier, Triple Sec, and Cointreau. We end the episode with the best time of year to go to Mexico.

Vodka Margarita

Ingredients

• 2 oz vodka
• 1 oz grand marnier
• 1 oz fresh lime juice
• 2 oz frozen limeade
• 1 lime wheel
• Salt for the rim

Preparation

• Wet the rim of a tumbler and dip it into the salt.
• Place the cocktail ingredients in a cocktail shaker filled with ice and shake vigorously.
• Fill the glass with ice and strain the cocktail into the glass.
• Garnish with the lime wheel.

Episode 10 - Cocktails vs. Mocktails - Paloma and Paloma Mocktail

Our daughters Maddie and Savy join us for a special episode of Cocktails and Carry-ons where we compare the Paloma with the Paloma Mocktail. We talk about mother-daughter trips and get off-topic with the “squirt count”.

Paloma

Ingredients

• 2 oz blanco tequila
• 2 oz fresh grapefruit juice
• .5 oz fresh lime juice
• Pinch of salt
• 2 - 3 oz grapefruit soda

Preparation

• Fill a tumbler with ice.
• Place the tequila, grapefruit juice, lime juice, and salt in a glass and then fill to the top with grapefruit soda.
• Stir and enjoy!

Paloma Mocktail

Ingredients

• 2 oz fresh grapefruit juice
• .5 oz agave syrup
• .5 oz fresh lime juice
• 2 - 3 oz grapefruit soda

Preparation

• Fill a tumbler with ice.
• Place the grapefruit juice, agave syrup, lime juice, and salt in a glass and then fill to the top with grapefruit soda.
• Stir and enjoy!