Camp Happy Hour With Stanley

While most everyone enjoys a cold one after a long day on the trail or playing outside, it’s not always as easy as rocking up to your favorite local dive bar. While cold beer is always refreshing, on longer trips it’s a little less feasible. With the plethora of artisanal spirits now available, why not go all Mad Men and start whipping up fancy cocktails each night in camp? For Spring ’16, Stanley makes it easier with a complete yet compact cocktail system.

The appropriately named Adventure Happy Hour System has everything necessary for mixing the best cocktails at camp, all in one multi-piece, nesting system. The system includes a 591 ml large shaker with strainer lid for filtering ice and residues, a set of double wall stainless steel rocks glasses (20o ml), citrus juicer that can be mounted on the shaker or cups, and jigger cap. The set is available in two sizes–one with 4 rocks glasses ($50) and the other with 2 rocks glasses ($35).

The Happy Hour Systems is made from 18/8 stainless steel that is rust and BPA-free. Once you get home, simple throw everything in the dishwasher to clean.

In order to make simple but fancy cocktails to impress your friends, pair the Happy Hour System with a Stanley flask filled with your favorite whiskey (we recommend Wyoming Whiskey or High West), tequila, vodka, or rum, pack a lemon/lime or two in your pack, and a GoToob full of simple syrup (or even better–use an Untapped Maple Syrup packet as a sweetener). When in the backcountry rather than car camping, let the shaker sit in a cold river for a bit to help chill your drink. If no river or lake is available, drink it straight up–who really cares, anyway.

My current favorite backcountry cocktail of choice is a whiskey sour:

6 parts Wyoming Whiskey

2 parts lemon juice

1 part simple syrup or maple syrup

Juice the lemon over the shaker, add the other ingredients, shake (over ice if available), and serve (again, on the rocks if available). It’s that easy. And delicious.

Cheers!