The Year 2020 will probably be known for the explosion of the Zoom social hour. Whether you’re joining them for work functions, to keep in touch with family and friends, or to take advantage of an unprecedented opportunity to see the inside of other people’s homes, Zoom calls are definitely going to be a part of this summer’s activities.

The staff at Small Planet wanted to share some ways to increase your enjoyment of your Zoom social hours or (gasp) even in-person gatherings with some drink recipes, activities for the kids and some pictures.

Two adult beverage recipes and an alcohol-free taste treat

A lot of social hour participants settle on a glass of wine or beer for social hour meetings. Why not kick the tastiness up a notch with one of these two easy, delicious three-ingredient cocktails?

The first recipe is for a Moscow Mule. A lot of people don’t want to make them at home because they don’t have the copper cups that they see the drinks served in at restaurants. Well, guess what? Moscow Mule’s don’t need to be served in a copper cup and are probably one of the simplest drinks to make. The main function of the copper cup is to provide insulation for the cocktail, but chances are you’ll consume it long before the extended insulative properties would be needed. Another option is to serve this drink in an insulated cup so you can savor the drink at a more leisurely pace.

To make a Moscow Mule, you’ll need vodka, ginger beer (Reed’s Ginger Beer is preferred) and fresh lime juice. First, fill a tall glass with ice, add ½ (355 ml.) cup of ginger beer, a 1.5 oz shot (45 ml.) of vodka and stir slightly to mix. Then add 1 tablespoon (15 ml.) lime, give it another quick stir and garnish with a slice of lime.

This Mango Paloma cocktail is an Eva Rooks creation and was inspired by a cocktail served at The Waterstreet Café in Olympia, Washington. This 1-2-3 starter recipe lends itself to substitutions and adding your own creative touches. The cocktail really basically needs three ingredients, although it does get a bit of extra flavor by adding a fourth.

Here’s how you make Eva’s version of a Mango Paloma. This is truly a “part recipe” so you can scale it up and down to the size of drink you’d like to make. The first ingredient is silver tequila. The second ingredient is mango juice. The best kind to use is the one made with fruit juices and no added sugar such as the one pictured on the right. The third ingredient is grapefruit soda. The best one is Jarrito’s grapefruit soda, which isn’t always easy to find (pictured on the far right). An acceptable substitute is Fresca (grapefruit flavor) and if that isn’t available you can substitute another grapefruit flavored soda.

So the quick and easy build of this drink is: put ice in a tall glass, add one-part tequila, 2 two-parts mango juice (if you like a less sweet and fruity drink, you can reduce this down to one part), and stir. Add the three-parts of the Jarritos or Fresca. Give it a brief stir. If you like a bit more bite to your drink, add a squeeze of lime juice and enjoy.

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Our two non-alcoholic recipe suggestion also follow the three-ingredient or less theme. Taylor Groebner on our Tumwater team offered this suggestion. Pour one 12 ounce (355 ml.) can of carbonated water over ice, add ½ cup frozen sliced strawberries and the juice from ½ squeezed lime. Give a brief stir. Delicious as is or add a sprig of fresh mint if you have it.

Our second three-ingredient, non-alcoholic recipe suggestion, the Blue Nanaimo, was submitted by Kaleb DeJong who works in our Vancouver warehouse and named by Albert Rooks. Kaleb created this drink and shared it with friends on river outings during the summer. Here’s the recipe: Shake three ounces Polar Blast Hawaiian Punch or Blue Raspberry Kool Aid, two ounces of white cranberry juice with ice. Pour into a tall glass and top with Sprite to taste. This one’s probably a clothes stainer, so maybe just let kids drink this when they’re in the kiddie pool.

Keeping the Kids Busy

If you’re doing a work social hour, the kids might get bored. So at Small Planet we’ve collaborated with Indigo Ink Boutique to create positive environmental messaging coloring sheets for kids (or adults). You can download them here (click on the picture you’d like to download) and share a photo of your little artist’s completed work by clicking here. Some kids are just too small for coloring, like little Maggie, but she’s still keeping it environmentally conscious in her planet-friendly t-shirt.

Summer Seems Shorter Every Year

So we hope that after taking a few minutes to read this blog post, you’ll be inspired to slow down a little to enjoy your virtual and real time connections with others. After all, there are only 76 days of summer left.