Florida has been in the news lately, so why not lean into the sunshine state with some of their signature cocktails
From the Flora-bama to Key West, Florida has a history of snuggling up to the cocktail. The spring break capital, home of Miami and its famous nightclubs, the sunshine state knows how to mix up a good time. From end to end of the state is 838 miles – which gives plenty of room to have a signature bar or 30. And with that comes signature drinks…and here are the best Florida cocktail recipes so you can bask in your own sunshine.
In the great tradition of strong drinks, this one can pack a punch. The drink was created in the 1950s at the Holiday Isle Tiki Bar in Islamorada. The bartenders wanted to get rid of the last few sips of several liqueurs, and this legendary cocktail was developed.
Ingredients
2 cups ice
1 ounce pineapple juice
1 ounce orange juice
1 ounce blackberry liqueur
1 ounce banana liqueur
1 ounce light rum
1 ounce dark rum or aged rum
Create
Fill glass with ice
Add the liquid contents and stir
Pour the 151 in the straw or on the top
Serve and sip
The Hurricane
While the drink is supposed to have been developed at Pat O’Brians in New Orleans, the state has had its share of hurricanes. Another powerful drink – this one attracts spring breakers, snowbirds and just people out for a fun Thursday night. The mixture of liquors can be lethal, so be careful on the amount consumed!
Ingredients
1 oz rum
1ozlight rum
1 oz pineapple
2tablespoonslime juice
1cupice
Create
Fill hurricane glass half full with crushed ice
Combine dark rum, light rum, lime juice, and pineapple in a cocktail shaker
Add ice; cover and shake until the outside of the shaker has frosted
Strain into glass
Margarita
Jimmy Buffet made this drink insanely popular. From beach bars to Mexican restaurants, this is a staple in the state with lime grove of variations. Here is an easy version for you to toast to good times and start your mini staycation ASAP.
Crushed ice
3 lime wedges
2 ounces gold tequila
½ ounce silver tequila
1 ¼ ounces Rose’s lime juice
½ ounce Triple Sec
Salt
Create
Combine all ingredients except for the lime into a shaker
Squeeze 2 of the lime wedges into the shaker and then shake well
The Bushwacker is in the vein of the mudslide but with a twist. You can slide up to the Sandshaker bar in Pensacola Beach and enjoy this creamy delight. You will see music lovers (live bands), college kids, locals, tourists and more at this staple stop.
Ingredients
2ounces dark rum
1ouncecoffee liqueur (such as Kahlúa)
1ounce dark creme de cacao
2ounceswhole milk
1ouncecream of coconut (such as Coco Lopez)
Garnish: nutmeg, freshly grated
Create
Add the dark rum, coffee liqueur, dark creme de cacao, whole milk, cream of coconut and a cup of ice into a blender
Blend until combined and frothy
Pour into a Hurricane glass
Garnish with freshly grated nutmeg
The Fuzzy Navel
The sunshine state is the land of oranges, so why not a delicious fruit drink that isn’t a mimosa or a screwdriver – welcome to the Fuzzy Navel.
Ingredients
2 ops peach schnapps
6 ounces freshly squeezed orange juice
Orange slice
Create
Add a handful of ice to a highball glass
Pour in the peach schnapps, followed by the orange juice
Stir, and garnish with the orange slice.
Hairy Navel
Add an oz of vodka to the above recipes and you transform the drinks to a Hairy Navel.
Sometimes you want something light that tickles the taste buds but doesn’t weigh down your stomach….here are some refreshing cocktails.
Sometimes you just need to shake things up and get a fresh perspective. Whether a change of seasons, hard day, or just want need some cheer, you need a little fun boost. Well here are the best refreshing cocktails to lighten your spirits!
Spa water usually has cucumbers in it because it is so refreshing. They are healthy with a mild but distinctly crisp and exhilarating flavor. Why not treat yourself to a cucumber martini?
Ingredients
3 thick slicescucumber, plus thin slices for garnish
2 1/2ouncesvodka or gin
1/2ouncedry vermouth
1cupice
Create
Put thick cucumber slices in a cocktail shaker. Use a muddler or a wooden spoon to muddle to bring out flavor
Add vodka and vermouth
Add ice
Put the top on the cocktail shaker and shake vigorously for at least 30 seconds
Strain the mixture into a martini glass
Garnish with a few thin slices cucumber
Brown Derby
Leaning into the great vintage cocktails, this 1930s drink will be a treat to your taste buds. The pairing of bourbon and grapefruit adds complexity and mellow undertones to the flavor.
Ingredients
2ounces bourbon
1 oz grapefruit juice
1/2 oz simple syrup
Splash of honey
Create
Combine bourbon, grapefruit juice, honey and simply syrup to a cocktail shaker
Fill it with ice and then shake until very cold
Strain the drink into a cocktail glass
Garnish with grapefruit slice
Whiskey Sour
This historic drink has saved lives. While the recipe first popped up in 1862, believed to have been consumed much earlier. Sea travel was difficult and like of fresh good and clean water lead to scurvy, a potentially fatal disease that was caused, in part, by a lack of vitamin C. It was safe to drink whisky, rum and other spirits on trips and sailors would take vast amounts of citrus food. Cominbing them was natural and a healthy option to avoid disease, now it is just a happy drink!
2 oz whiskey
1 oz lemon juice, fresh squeezed is best
1 oz simple syrup
1 cocktail cherry for garnish
Create
Combine whiskey, lemon juice and simple syrup in a cocktail shaker
Smash drinks have been around for over a century and include the famed Mint Julep. First noted in Jerry Thomas’s bar guide in the mid-19th century, these drinks are known to be perfect to provide good spirits and cooling atmospheres.
Ingredients
5fl ozSauza Gold Tequila
2fl ozfreshly squeezed lemon juice
.5fl ozfreshly squeezed lime juice
3fl ozhoney simple syrupequal parts honey and water dissolved over medium heat- about 3 tablespoon honey and 3 tablespoon water
8-10mint leavestorn into small pieces
2cupscrushed ice
Create
Make simple syrup by mixing 3 tablespoon honey and 3 tablespoon water in a small pan. Melt over medium heat until honey dissolves into water (about 1 minute), cool before adding to cocktail shaker
In a cocktail shaker add mint leaves, lime and lemon juice, tequila, and honey simple syrup
Shake for 30 seconds
Fill cocktail glasses with about 1 cup crushed ice and pour in the cocktail mixture
Each generation has a variety of concerns, but a big surprise is the amount of Gen Z’ers who are now worried about fertility. According to surveys, nearly half of Gen Z is worried about their fertility despite not currently trying to conceive. The Centers for Disease Control defines infertility as “not being able to get pregnant after one+ year of unprotected sex.” According to a report published by the World Health Organization (WHO), “Around 17.5% of the adult population experience infertility.”
Previous generations worried about fertility when it came time to have children, Gen Z sees it part of their future path. They are fretting about becoming pregnant at 35 when they are 25. When deciding to have kids later, they want to know what to do now so they can have what they want then. Can marijuana help Gen Z’s fertility concerns?
With alcohol it is clear chronic alcohol exposure can cause problems with fertility in both men and women. For men, it can lead to damaged sperm and for women, it may affect the ability to conceive. While actively receiving medical treatments to get pregnant, alcohol can reduce a woman’s chance.
For women, frequent use of marijuana can cause issues which could tamp down fertility. Consuming as often as three times per week may have impacts says a report published in Fertility & Sterility Science.Evidence suggests marijuana can reduce female fertility by disrupting hypothalamic release of gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH), leading to reduced estrogen and progesterone production and anovulatory menstrual cycles. It can also delay or inhibit ovulation. For men, data showed current or past marijuana users had more damaged sperm, lower sperm counts and reduced semen volume.
But can worrying and the constant anxiety around it affect the outcome? While it’s unlikely stress alone cause infertility, stress interferes with a woman’s ability to get pregnant. Research has shown that women with a history of depression are twice as likely to experience infertility. Anxiety also can prolong the time needed to achieve pregnancy.
While more research needs to be done, managing stress may improve fertility.
Some of the top reasons people drink alcohol is to relax, for enjoyment, to be part of a group, to avoid physical and/or psychological pain, to experiment and for rebellion. It has been around for thousands of years used in religious ceremonies, medical treatments, sensual moments and more. But, what are the top 10 reasons people consume marijuana today? Well, there is some data, and it varies a little by age.
With legalization, all of Canada and over 50% of the US have access to legal marijuana, leading to it becoming more accepted. Over 85% believe it should be legal in some form and the federal government has acknowledge is has health properties.
Psychology Todaypublished an article with the information. They took data from four different studies to discover use reasons and published some of the findings. The papers are typically based on secondary research. In other words, they rely on surveys and data collected from other sources which they use to build a “picture” of the average consumer.
Age does play a significant role for motivation. College freshmen make different decisions based on their limited life experience and social environment. The first study looked at possible motivators for entering college students.
“The most frequently reported reasons included enjoyment/fun, conformity, experimentation, social enhancement, boredom, and relaxation.”
Social acceptance was another high ranking category in this age group and it makes sense. When you’re finally “out of the nest”, you need a conduit to engage with other people. If people are smoking weed, you may feel slightly more inclined to try to “fit in”.
Post college age is where the majority of consumers exist. Another study looked at this demographic to understand motivations for consuming cannabis. Not surprisingly, there is a far more nuanced list of reasons than the college aged demographic. According to researchers here are the top 10 reasons people consume marijuana.
Similar to alcohol, the top reason is recreation. But unlike alcohol, the next major reason is medical use, with a significant about of people using it to treat a variety of issues including chronic pain, cancer, seizures, anxiety, and more.
Coping with stress and anxiety is further down on the list, something different from alcohol. But using substances to escape from long term issues is rather productive. Like a glass at the end of the day, a gummy or puff from a vape it can just take the edge a rough day. But doing it too much and indulging to much could be a reason to evaluate the motive.
The study researchers shared “Users are for the most part very self aware of their consumption habits, and alters their behavior when they see it as problematic.”