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How to Survive Holiday Party Season

December is well upon us and the invitations are rolling in. It’s Holiday Party Season and everyone (and their mother!) seems to be hosting one. Party central! It’s fun and festive and oh so lovely, but it can also be a bit overwhelming. Now before you call me out for being lame, let me say that from an alcohol standpoint, there is a lot of it served up this month. And while, free booze (oftentimes at these parties) is wonderful, overdoing it isn’t a good thing for our livers and overall health. And unless you want to be that person at your work holiday party, it’s always a good idea to keep your alcohol consumption down when in the presence of coworkers and your boss. You may want to save those wild times for when you are out with your pals. Sorry to be a bit of a nerd here but these are things that I firmly stand by. So with that, here are some easy tips to survive that party after party for the next month.

How to Survive Holiday Season | Bartender Atlas

_____ & Soda
If you are like me, consuming a lot of sugar makes me cringe and holiday season is full of it. Instead of ordering whatever cocktail is on offer at the party, ask the bartender for something with soda. Step it up with a Tequila & Soda or Gin & Soda – it will be much tastier than a Vodka Soda and you won’t have all that unnecessary added sugar that you would get should there be juices and other ingredients added. (You can save that for whatever is on the dessert table!)

Order a Mocktail
I know, I know, drinking a cocktail without the fun seems just silly. And maybe it is and maybe I am but… consuming seven drinks in an evening isn’t exactly recommended by your doctor. Switch things up in between the good stuff and ask the bartender to make you a mocktail. Any good bartender can put together a tasty drink without the booze and no one else at the party will even have a clue. When Josh was working with Hendrick’s Gin, we would go out a lot and of course, drink Hendrick’s. We would order Gin & Tonics and then our second drink would simply be soda with that cucumber garnish and no one, but the bartender ever knew.

How to Survive Holiday Season | Bartender Atlas

Spritz It
That’s right, add a little soda to your glass of white wine and you now have a Spritz. It’s delicious, the bubbles are nice and you’re diluting the drink in the best way possible.

Shots
Don’t do them, avoid them. They’re just not necessary. It’s cute if a bunch of your coworkers want to bond by doing a round and if that’s the case and you get pressured in, you can always fake it and set the glass aside out of sight from your pals. It’s lame but I bet you will feel a lot better in the morning by avoiding it.

This time of year is a great excuse to get together with those that you love. Overall, enjoy and be safe this holiday season. Look after yourself and those around you. 


Jessica Blaine Smith
Co-creator at Bartender Atlas
Jess co-created Bartender Atlas with her bartender husband Josh Lindley. She has worked as a full-time freelance photographer for the past two decades. Her photography focuses on lifestyle portraits, food & drink photography and corporate portraits and events She recently photographed Evelyn Chick's For the Love of Cocktails book. While not a bartender herself, she definitely loves a strong stirred cocktail, preferably one that is brown and/or smokey. Jess is a proud ambassador of her home city of Toronto.
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