Blake Lively's Holiday Party Tips Include Betty Booze & Garnish Boards
“It’s the Build-A-Bear of drink making.”
The holidays are a great time for getting together with friends and family. And no get-together would be complete without some gooood food and drinks. Blake Lively’s unique tip for such occasions: Make a garnish board for your drinks.
As the founder of Betty Booze and Betty Buzz, the 37-year-old knows a thing or two about specialty drinks and cocktails, and believes that a garnish board is just the thing to pair with them — even more than a cheese board. “What I love about having a station like this is that it works for and is fun for every single age,” she tells Elite Daily over email.
What Is A Garnish Board?
Similar to a charcuterie board, a garnish board is an Insta-worthy platter of snacks and fruits that can be used to accessorize your beverages. According to Lively, these are some of the best ingredients to include on your party platter:
- Fresh mint
- Basil
- Rosemary
- Lavender
- Sage
- Lemon
- Grapefruit
- Lime
- Apple slices
- Peach slices
- Cinnamon sticks
- Pomegranate seeds
- Cranberries
- Cherries
- Candy canes
The It Ends with Us star also suggests leaving out bitters (think: cassia bark, cardamom, peppermint, and orange) that your guests can use, along with a bucket of ice.
“I like to make the ice interesting in a shape or by freezing a garnish inside,” Lively says, “but any ice will do.” Then, your friends and fam can put together their own picture-perfect cocktail with everything laid out on the table.
With the right garnish, it’s so easy to make one of Lively’s spirits look like you ordered it at a 5-star restaurant. “Just open a bottle of Betty Buzz or Booze and drink, or you can pour it over ice with a simple garnish or two,” she says. “It’s the Build-A-Bear of drink making.”
To celebrate the holidays, you could even serve up Lively’s latest offering, which I got to try just in time for the festive season.
An Honest Review Of Betty Booze’s Sparkling Bourbon With Peach Honey Mint
Stop everything, I just found my new fave Betty Booze sip. Last December, the Elite Daily staff tried all the Betty Booze and Betty Buzz flavors at the time, and the Sparkling Bourbon with Apple Ginger Sour Cherry was my favorite. What I liked the most was the prominent taste of each ingredient, which is what I loved about the Peach Honey Mint.
This new flavor is *so* delicious and nostalgic. It tastes like the viral Honey Citrus Mint Tea at Starbucks, or a cozy, sweet honey tea. The honey is actually the main character, with the fruity peach and refreshing mint as a solid supporting cast. It’s so light and flavorful, making it an easy sip that I couldn’t wait to recommend to my friends — even those who don’t like bourbon.
Tips For Pairing Your New Fave
If you’re serving up some food with your new Sparkling Bourbon with Peach Honey Mint, the Betty Booze team recommends having a goat cheese, peach, and cardamom dip as an appetizer with a peach cobbler for dessert.
You could even serve this drink with a roast leg of lamb and mint jelly entree, so the mint in your drink really shines. To keep it simple, you could simply garnish your bourbon with a peach slice on your glass, too.
Between this and Selena Gomez’s Rare Beauty matcha latte, it seems peach is having a moment, and I’m so here for it.
