Long Island Tea
Perfect Drinks for Your Boat
Perfect Drinks for Your Boat
The weather is warming up, the water is sparkling and it’s time to gather up some friends or family slide the boat in the water and get a little tipsy. Before we get into what makes a good boat drink let’s take some time to appreciate what makes them special. A day on your boat means that you and your chosen companions have nothing else to do that day, or evening, or ideally the rest of the week. There’s no waiting for happy hour or checking the clock. There’s no looking over a menu, dealing with a bartender or scavenging for drink specials. Boat drinks mean that you have a whole day to do whatever you want, or do nothing. Hopefully you’ll choose to do nothing but drink, swim and enjoy the sun.
So, now that you’ve entered the proper state of mind, let’s get into the mechanics. What makes a drink good for a day on the boat? First of all it should be strong. You don’t want to be heading back to mix a new drink all the time. You want something that you can sip on for awhile, so throw out all those fancy shot recipes. You want a cool, tasty concoction that will sit by your side on the deck. It should also be fairly easy to make on the back of a boat. You’re already floating, so let’s not try to complicate things with layered drinks or worry about bruising the gin.
Taste is, as always, a matter of taste, but there is a certain theme to boat drinks. Citrus and rum are both common flavors and a certain tartness and freshness pervades these drink recipes. A certain propensity for fruit slices may also be noticed. Don’t go overboard with the garnish, please. This is definitely not the time for creamy White Russians or boiling Irish coffees. So leave the coffee mug at home, grab your cocktail shaker and give a couple of these a try. It might take a few hangovers, but you’ll find that perfect flavor under the sun soon enough.
Let’s start with a classic:
Long Island Iced Tea
• One fresh lemon half (or juice)
• One fresh lime half (or juice)
• 1/2 oz. Rum
• 1 oz. Vodka
• 1 oz. Whiskey
• 1/2 oz. Gin
• 1/2 oz. Tequila
• 1/2 oz. Maple Syrup
Mix in a pint glass over ice and top off with cola or soda water. In case you weren’t paying too much attention this drink is strong. If mixed properly it will not taste strong. Definitely to be sipped and enjoyed, not gulped. Two or three of these is usually enough to meet your alcohol intake requirements for the day.
Margarita
• 1 oz Gold Tequila
.5 oz Silver Tequila
.5 oz Triple Sec
.5 oz Orange Curacao
.5 oz Lime juice
2 Lime Wedges
Please god don’t turn this into slush in your blender. In fact, never turn anything into slush in your blender. That’s no way to treat a drink. Mix this and pour over ice into a salt rimmed glass over ice. Drop in the lime wedges and drink like a human being.
Rum Highball
• 2 oz spiced rum
• Splash of Tonic water
• Lime
This is the essence of simplicity. Pour rum over ice, add tonic water and rim the glass with lime. It’s easy, tasty and smells wonderful. You don’t need a whole liquor cabinet and it’s pretty difficult to get the mix wrong. This is my personal favorite for all of these reasons. It’s also easy to drink at just the right rate to keep you buzzy without having you stumbling onto the docks at the end of your voyage.
Enjoy these drinks in sunshine and health, fellow boaters. And happy Summer!
Renee Varney is a freelance blogger and occasionally writes for delivery.com a site she loves using to find local Food Delivery Online using their Chinese Delivery Local directory.
