Cheers@Home Fall 2026 | Page 7

Signature Drinks Spice Up Sports by MELISSA DOWLING
the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, FL. Created by bartender Todd Trofimuk in partnership with Chrome Horse Society tequila, the Show Pony( full recipe below) combines tequila, grapefruit juice, lime juice, club soda and Aperol. Beyond horse events, the Masters golf tournament, which takes place each April in
Augusta, GA, has an unofficial cocktail called the Azalea. Made with vodka, lemon juice, pineapple juice and grenadine, the drink’ s pink color mimics the flowers surrounding the green.
The Pimm’ s Cup cocktail has become a centerpiece of the Wimbledon tennis tournament after making its debut in 1971. It’ s named after its primary ingredient, Pimm’ s No. 1 gin-based liqueur, which is mixed with sparkling lemon soda and garnished with mint, cucumber, strawberries and apples. Then there’ s the wildly successful Grey Goose Honey Deuce, introduced at the US Open tennis tournament in 2007. Created by restaurateur Nick Mautone for US Open sponsor Grey Goose, the Honey Deuce combines the brand’ s vodka, fresh lemonade and Chambord raspberry liqueur. It’ s then garnished with a skewer of three honeydew melon balls that resemble tennis balls. The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center sells hundreds of thousands of Grey Goose Honey Deuce cocktails throughout the two-week event in New York. Purchases of the drink rose 32 % year over year in 2025, with about 740,00 sold. The cocktail has become so popular that some operators offer their own take on the Honey Deuce during the tournament’ s run. Queens Tavern in New York, for instance, put British spin on the classic with dry vermouth, honey syrup, and clear apple liqueur. Fortuna created the Dragon Fruit Honey Deuce, which is sweetened with honey and finished with a dusting of sumac flakes for a subtle Mediterranean twist. Felice served up The Baseline, with Grey Goose vodka, fresh lime juice, agave, Chambord and fresh honeydew melon. Grey Goose more recently built on its tennis legacy with the Lemon Ace cocktail, unveiled at the Australian Open’ s 2025 tournament. It’ s made with Grey Goose vodka, passion fruit syrup and sparkling lemonade, and garnished with a lemon ball and fresh mint. IHG Hotels & Resorts launched the Watermelon Slice at the 2025 US Open. The combination of Moët & Chandon Impérial Brut Champagne, Evolution Fresh Mighty Watermelon juice, elderflower liqueur and lime, is served in IHG’ s bespoke tennis-inspired collectible cup at the IHG Racquet Bar throughout the US Open.
The Champagne brand in 2026 introduced the Moët Serve, a madeto-order cocktail featuring Moët Ice Impérial and fresh lime, served in a custom can inspired by the tennis ball canister.
1 ½ oz. Chrome Horse Society tequila 3 oz. White grapefruit juice ½ oz. Fresh lime juice 1 ½ oz. Club soda ½ oz. Aperol
Combine all ingredients except the soda and Aperol in a shaker. Pour into a glass filled with ice. Top with club soda. Finish with a float of Aperol. Garnish with a lime wheel.
Bartender Todd Trofimuk created this recipe with Chrome Horse tequila for the 2026 the Winter Equestrian Festival.
| TREND WATCH |
The U. S. Open sold about 740,000 Grey Goose Honey Deuce cocktails in 2025.

Signature Drinks Spice Up Sports by MELISSA DOWLING

People like to drink alcohol at sporting events, and options have
evolved well beyond the standard beer to wine, cocktails, hard
seltzer and other ready-to-drink beverages. Signature-serve cocktails
, typically developed in partnership with spirits brands and
event venues, have been gaining popularity in recent years.
It’ s not exactly a new trend: The Kentucky Derby’ s Mint Julep,
which dates back to the 1930s, is the OG of sporting event cocktails
. Churchill Downs serves about 127,000 Mint Juleps— made
with bourbon, fresh mint, sugar and crushed ice— during the
two-day event. The Julep has inspired numerous riffs during the
famous May horse race.
The Preakness Stakes— the second jewel of the Triple Crown
— has its own signature drink,
the
Black-Eyed
Susan.
Introduced in the 1970s and named after Maryland’ s state flower, it’ s made with bourbon, vodka, orange juice, pineapple juice and sour mix. The Belmont Stakes horse race has had several signature drinks, most recently, the Belmont Jewel, with bourbon, lemonade and pomegranate juice. A new horse-themed drink is the Show Pony, which made its debut this past winter at the 2026
the Winter Equestrian Festival in Wellington, FL. Created by bartender Todd Trofimuk in partnership with Chrome Horse Society tequila, the Show Pony( full recipe below) combines tequila, grapefruit juice, lime juice, club soda and Aperol. Beyond horse events, the Masters golf tournament, which takes place each April in
The Watermelon Slice at the US Open combines Moët & Chandon Impérial Brut Champagne, watermelon juice, elderflower liqueur and lime.
Augusta, GA, has an unofficial cocktail called the Azalea. Made with vodka, lemon juice, pineapple juice and grenadine, the drink’ s pink color mimics the flowers surrounding the green.

TENNIS DRINKS, ANYONE?

The Pimm’ s Cup cocktail has become a centerpiece of the Wimbledon tennis tournament after making its debut in 1971. It’ s named after its primary ingredient, Pimm’ s No. 1 gin-based liqueur, which is mixed with sparkling lemon soda and garnished with mint, cucumber, strawberries and apples. Then there’ s the wildly successful Grey Goose Honey Deuce, introduced at the US Open tennis tournament in 2007. Created by restaurateur Nick Mautone for US Open sponsor Grey Goose, the Honey Deuce combines the brand’ s vodka, fresh lemonade and Chambord raspberry liqueur. It’ s then garnished with a skewer of three honeydew melon balls that resemble tennis balls. The USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center sells hundreds of thousands of Grey Goose Honey Deuce cocktails throughout the two-week event in New York. Purchases of the drink rose 32 % year over year in 2025, with about 740,00 sold. The cocktail has become so popular that some operators offer their own take on the Honey Deuce during the tournament’ s run. Queens Tavern in New York, for instance, put British spin on the classic with dry vermouth, honey syrup, and clear apple liqueur. Fortuna created the Dragon Fruit Honey Deuce, which is sweetened with honey and finished with a dusting of sumac flakes for a subtle Mediterranean twist. Felice served up The Baseline, with Grey Goose vodka, fresh lime juice, agave, Chambord and fresh honeydew melon. Grey Goose more recently built on its tennis legacy with the Lemon Ace cocktail, unveiled at the Australian Open’ s 2025 tournament. It’ s made with Grey Goose vodka, passion fruit syrup and sparkling lemonade, and garnished with a lemon ball and fresh mint. IHG Hotels & Resorts launched the Watermelon Slice at the 2025 US Open. The combination of Moët & Chandon Impérial Brut Champagne, Evolution Fresh Mighty Watermelon juice, elderflower liqueur and lime, is served in IHG’ s bespoke tennis-inspired collectible cup at the IHG Racquet Bar throughout the US Open.
The Champagne brand in 2026 introduced the Moët Serve, a madeto-order cocktail featuring Moët Ice Impérial and fresh lime, served in a custom can inspired by the tennis ball canister.

Show Pony

1 ½ oz. Chrome Horse Society tequila 3 oz. White grapefruit juice ½ oz. Fresh lime juice 1 ½ oz. Club soda ½ oz. Aperol
Combine all ingredients except the soda and Aperol in a shaker. Pour into a glass filled with ice. Top with club soda. Finish with a float of Aperol. Garnish with a lime wheel.
Bartender Todd Trofimuk created this recipe with Chrome Horse tequila for the 2026 the Winter Equestrian Festival.