As I write this post, it is officially 5 years, almost to the minute, that I married the greatest guy in the whole world. That day was truly one of the most fun days of my entire life, and in addition to being filled with love from family and friends, it was also filled with awesome cocktails and food (hey, the name "The Boastful Host" had to come from somewhere!). So I figured, why not share one of our signature drinks from that night with all of you!

Much of our wedding had components that focused on the water - taking the plunge (we first met at a polar bear plunge), we live at the beach, and you'll see by our photo later the reception ended with a big splash! It was most fitting that we chose the name "A's Strawberry Splash" for this drink.

You can get out some of your pent up aggressions, because you have some muddling to do for this drink. Other than that though, it's pretty simple, and more importantly, super tasty!

Ingredients (serves 4 modest size drinks or 2 giant ones as shown here):
4 shots of vodka
Juice from 1/2 orange
Juice from 1/2 lemon
4 big juicy strawberries
Small handful of mint and basil leaves
Simple syrup to taste (my strawberries were not as sweet as they could be)
Club soda (optional)

Directions:
In a large cocktail shaker, place the strawberries, herbs, and 1/2 of the vodka, and then muddle to get all of the flavors released and delicious. Fill the shaker with ice, the remainder of the vodka, and the orange and lemon juice, and then shake until it is icy cold. Take a tiny taste to see if you need to add any simple syrup. Fill two glasses with ice (highball would be the proper glass of choice, but like me, use whatever glass makes you happy), and pour. I added a little club soda on top for some bubbles, but that's totally optional. 

Be forewarned, this drink is yummy and does not taste like alcohol. After a few of these and being on the natural high of your wedding day, you too could find yourself swimming, fully dressed, in the middle of the night!

We hope you all love this drink as much as we did. Happy Friday!

xoxo
​Adrienne

Actual wedding photos courtesy of Cengiz @AdagionStudio

It's finally starting to resemble summer again, so perfect excuse to celebrate with a seasonal cocktail! My basil is growing much better than my strawberries, so I figured let's use what we have! 

A couple of fresh ripe peaches, just begging to be eaten, seemed like a perfect pairing, especially when teamed up with bourbon!

Fairly short list of ingredients on this one, so really the most important thing is just to make sure they are fresh so each ingredient can really shine. 

Ingredients:
!/4 of a ripe peach, diced
4 basil leaves
Juice from 1/4 of a lemon
3/4 oz of simple syrup
2 oz bourbon

Directions:
In an old fashioned glass or a pint size mason jar like we've used, add the peach, basil, lemon juice, and simple syrup and muddle. Add your bourbon and stir. Top with crushed ice, and give it another stir.

When The Boastful Host was recently asked to pull together a last minute 40th birthday party, we jumped at the chance. Amy recently hit the big 4-0 and mine is quickly approaching, so we absolutely understand the necessity of celebrating this big day (but then again, we also think Tuesday is a good enough excuse to throw a party)!

We didn't have much time, and we needed a theme, so we used the birthday girl's love of fun Mexican food as inspiration for a Fortieth Fiesta!

While Amy started crafting, I immediately went into menu planning mode. Knowing we were doing a fiesta, I assumed a tequila cocktail would be a perfect compliment until the guest of honor said that she doesn't like tequila.Obviously there are tons of other options out there, but what to do that still felt on theme and paired well? How about a Hibiscus Tea and vodka based cocktail to feel tropical? 

To make this even more perfect, I had just made a ton of mint simple syrup, so we were going to put all of that deliciousness to work in this cocktail as well. 

This isn't the quickest cocktail to put together, but with a little planning, it is well worth it!

Ingredients

Hibiscus Tea Syrup
3 cups water
3/4 cup of loose hibiscus tea 
1/2 cup sugar
Small bunch of mint

For Two Cocktails
4 oz hibiscus syrup
4 oz vodka
1.5 oz of fresh lime juice (about 1 large lime)
Sliced jalapeño rounds
Few sprigs of mint
Lime sliced into wheels

Directions:
Hibiscus tea syrup - You'll first need to make the hibiscus tea syrup (you can do this up to 2 weeks in advance). In a saucepan, add ½ cup sugar to 3 cups water and bring to a boil. Add dried hibiscus and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat add a small bunch of mint, and let steep for 15 minutes. Strain through a fine mesh strainer into a jar or glass container and chill until cold.

Cocktails - Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, chilled hibiscus syrup, lime juice, and vodka and shake vigorously to combine. Pour into glasses filled with ice and garnished with a couple of slices of jalapeño, a sprig of mint, and a wheel of line.

Feedback from the party was that this cocktail was a HUGE hit! A flavor a bit out of the ordinary, not too sweet, and a little bit of heat seemed to be a recipe for success. We'd love to know if you try this one and what you think.

Make every day a fiesta!
​Adrienne