Holy shots! Can you believe it, lushes? The Boozy Blondes just wrapped up Season 4 of the Boozy Blondes Podcast! Mind blown emoji!
This season was packed with travel, tastings, and so many special guests. The girls are so happy to celebrate another boozy season. They created this podcast to share their travels, drinks, and stories with fellow booze travelers. Four seasons later, they’ve done just that and more! In this episode they reflect on meeting amazing people, learning about beer, wine, and spirits, and sharing adventures across the U.S. and abroad.
The DOE is Champagne, of course! The Boozy Blondes are raising a glass to each other, and to you, in gratitude for joining them these past years on this crazy, and boozy, adventure.
The girls discuss highlights from the season. Molly breaks down her top 4 into different categories:
Most WTF Moment (Molly is mortified by her screechy voice in Episode 062 6-pack To Go with the Boozy Bros –listen here-)
Biggest Educational Takeaway (Episode 080 6-pack To Go with Jose Hernandez of 4 Ever Acres Kitchen –listen here– has been a resource for tequila buying for Molly)
Chrissy shares her top 4 moments from Season 4 as well:
Italy (From planning to execution, Italy was unforgettable. There are 4 episodes dedicated to Italy, so if you’re planning a trip, the girls hope those episodes are resourceful for you! Her favorite of the four is Episode 087 Wine Tour & Tasting Near Rome with Sally and Guido of Convivo Rome –listen here-)
Washington, DC (This surprise trip left the girls wanting more DC! Check out Episode 078 for tips and tricks of the best places to visit –listen here-)
Lebowski’s Kool-Luah (Super fun founders and super fun brand! The girls really enjoyed meeting Dave and Monica Kowalski of Lebowski’s Tap Room in Episode 091 –listen here-)
One special highlight of this episode is the game at the end! If you are familiar with the classic tv game show Password, you’ll have no trouble playing along! The girls bring back the Boozy Bros for an epic battle focused on themes of Season 4 – see how well you do!
As the girls say Arrivederci! to Season 4, they look forward to more boozy adventures in Season 5. None of this would be possible without you loyal lushes, and the girls are forever grateful for your support – without you, they would be two boozy blondes drinking alone in a closet!
The Boozy Blondes are bringing you another magical episode and this time they are including the Boozy Bros! The gang tackled a magical monorail pub crawl for Molly & Phil’s birthdays; this included stopping at bars in the Walt Disney World Monorail Resorts and as a bonus, they added the Wilderness Lodge, since they all love it there so much. Follow along and see how they attacked the challenge.
The DOE is a Dole Whip cocktail! In honor of the favorite Disney treat, Dole Whip, the gang is sucking up this delicious concoction as they recap their pub crawl journey. Molly blended Publix brand Banana Pineapple Lactose Free Ice Cream, pineapple juice and spiced rum to make the drinks.
Since there were four resorts on the adventure, each of the group members presented a resort:
Before they dive into their resorts, Molly explains the rules of a “Drink Roulette Poker” game the gang played at each stop:
Each player earns one card at each lounge
As a bonus, all four names go in one bag, and drink tokens, relative to each lounge, are in the other bag
Bonus card: Whoever’s name is drawn, draws a drink token. If he or she orders and drinks that drink, a bonus card is awarded
Bonus card: correctly predict monorail color
Bonus card: other random challenges that pop up on the fly (e.g., how tall is the fireplace in the Wilderness Lodge lobby)
Best poker hand wins at the end of the crawl
Losing poker hand orders transportation back to home resort or hotel
In addition to the drink roulette poker challenge, the Boozy Blondes made wardrobe changes at each Resort! They had a scavenger hunt book to follow along with too, which made the visit extra fun!
Phil starts with the Wilderness Lodge, where the group visited two lounges: Geyser Point Bar & Grill and Territory Lounge. Geyser Point offers great views on the water. Here Phil drank a beer, Rainer ordered a tequila soda and the girls enjoyed Pineapple Mules. In the Territory Lounge Phil and Chrissy split a Smores Old Fashioned, Molly had the L&C G&T (lavender and cucumber gin and tonic) and Rainer sipped on a beer. The group highly recommends ordering the popcorn sampler if you’re enjoying drinks here!
When they wrapped up, the group boarded a boat and enjoyed a short ride to the Magic Kingdom, where they transferred to the Grand Floridian boat. Chrissy walks listeners through this resort, and it was extremely busy the day they were there. They put their name in at the Enchanted Rose (pro tip to put your name in because they don’t take reservations), and ran down to the quick service restaurant Gasparilla Island Grille to grab to-go drinks while they waited for their names to be called (technically, they waited for Molly’s phone to receive a text, which is nice, so visitors to this resort can enjoy it from any place on property while waiting for a callback). Once they were called, they collectively ordered Espresso Martinis and truffle fries!
From here, the Boozy Blondes and Bros took the “highway in the sky” to the Contemporary Resort. Molly introduces the Contemporary, one of two original Disney resorts! The group squeezed into the bar at Steakhouse 71, which is always a favorite. Although it was crowded, the group still enjoyed their drinks (a round of tequila sodas) and split the Stack Burger – another favorite! And bonus – the bartenders surprised the group with Champagne in honor of the birthday twins, Phil and Molly! (Pro tip – if you’re celebrating, ask for a pin! You’ll sometimes get to experience a little extra Disney magic – like complimentary Champagne.)
By this time, the Magic Kingdom fireworks had started, so the group boarded the monorail to the final destination, Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. Rainer walks listeners through this stop, highlighting all the lounges. He advises if you want to get a seat at the Trader Sam’s Grog Grotto Speakeasy, get your name on the list early! Feeling the effects of the heat and drinks, the group decided to stop at only one lounge here, Trader Sam’s Tiki Terrace, outside the back of the main lobby. You’ll typically find live music at this beautiful outdoor lounge. Rainer sipped on Reposado, Molly enjoyed Rosita’s Margarita, Chrissy loved her Spikey Pineapple (made with Dole Whip!) and Phil had the Mosquito Mojito. It was time for more food, so they shared a tuna roll (with pink rice!) and dumplings.
Welcome back to another episode about beautiful Hawaii! In this episode the girls dish about all the best places to go on the island of Oahu!
The DOE is none other than the famous Hawaiian Mai Tai! Everywhere you go in Hawaii, someone has “the best Mai Tai on the island.” The girls crafted a pitcher of mai tais made with light rum, gold rum, cointreau, orgeat syrup and fresh lime juice. Most have a dark rum floater on top too!
Oahu has a completely different feel from Maui. Oahu is home to the state capital, Honolulu, Waikiki beach and white sand beaches, surfers, classic Hawaiian resorts, and tons of people. There are still many beautiful places to explore outside of the city, and this episode covers it all!
Molly stayed at the Sheraton Waikiki Beach. While it’s super touristy, she enjoyed staying in the middle of the city with the ability to walk to bars, restaurants and stores. The Sheraton has a beautiful adults only infinity pool over-looking the Pacific Ocean and Diamond Head as well as great restaurants, bars and shops. Next door to the Sheraton is the Royal Hawaiian – one of Waikiki’s most historic and iconic hotels. It’s known as the “Pink Palace of the Pacific” with pink accents everywhere and a delightful pink plumeria scent. This is home to the legendary Mai Tai Bar overlooking the Pacific with amazing sunset views and musicians nightly.
Molly rented a Jeep and explored the North Shore while she was here. From Waikiki Beach, it’s about an hour drive through beautiful countryside. Along with pulling off on the side of the road to enjoy the beaches and watch the surfers, below are two specific places to visit on the North Shore:
Kahuku Sugar Mill – food trucks, restaurants, local shops and vendors. She ordered food from Da Bald Guy, which appeared on the tv show the great food truck race and the Netflix Street Food USA show. She had drinks at the Kahuku Beer Garden, a tap room with about 14 beers on tap, most from local breweries. Molly had a flight: Churro Cream Ale, Guava Donut Sour, Legends Hazy IPA and Shave Ice Seltzer. Rainer had Hibiscus Sunrise.
Waimea Valley – this felt like going into Jurassic Park (as it should feel since some scenes were shot here from some of the more recent movies). It’s a nature preserve with a destination 3/4 mile hike to a 45-foot waterfall where you can swim. For you lushes, there is bar at the welcome center with fun specialty cocktails. Rainer had a vodka cucumber cooler and MollyI had the daily special – the Hawaiian Passion – tequila, lilikoi liqueur and ginger liqueur.
Traveling to the Southwest corner of Oahu, you’ll find Disney’s Aulani Resort. You can visit the resort even if you aren’t a guest, so Molly had small bites and cocktails at the Olelo Lounge while listening to live music. Molly drank The Old Koa Canoe (a version of an old fashioned) and Rainer had Green Sands, which was a mezcal based drink.
One popular spot scattered around the island is Leonard’s Bakery, serving up the famous malasadas (Portuguese donuts with a crispy outside, fluffy inside and coated in sugar). Chrissy enjoyed a version of these when she visited Portugal; pictured below are Portuguese tarts compared with the Portuguese-Hawaiian malasada. Leonard’s was the first place to introduce malasadas in Hawaii in 1952!
A trip to Oahu must include a visit to Pearl Harbor. At the Visitors Center there are two museums to explore, and you can make a reservation to go out to the Arizona Memorial. The USS Bowfin is also here with an audio tour. You can take a bus to Battleship Missouri, then to the Aviation Museum both located on Ford Island, which is an active military base. If you decide to visit, go as early as you possibly can; it gets extremely crowded. Take note that only clear bags are allowed here.
Time to get boozy! Molly visited Ko Hana Distillery & This Lil’ Piggy BBQ! Ko Hana Distillers specializes in agricole-style rum (French style of rum-making) made from Hawaiian sugarcane, unlike most rums, which are distilled from molasses. Ko Hana initially started making wine, but apparently sugar cane wine tastes like vinegar. They offer three different tasting adventures every 30 minutes on site. Molly had the classic flight: 2 Kea (white), 1 Koho (aged), 1 Kokoleka (cacao & honey) and Rainer had the aged rum flight: 1 Koho (aged), 1 Koa (koa wood aged), 1 Kila (cask strength), 1 Kokoleka (cacao & honey). Ko Hana offers distillery tours and farm tours and has a great shop filled with fun swag!
This Lil’ Piggy is on property serving up delicious bbq options. Molly grabbed a pre-made bottled daiquiri inside Ko Hana with cups and ice to enjoy with sliders and This Lil’ Piggy’s version of chili & rice with chopped Texas Style Beef Brisket.
After Ko Hana Molly found her way to Manoa Mead & Honey. Manoa specializes in raw, locally sourced honey and craft mead. It’s a very small space, mostly outdoors. Molly and Rainer each ordered a flight. Molly had the In Bloom Flight and Rainer enjoyed the Essential Flight. Manoa offers “bees to mead” tours, which includes an introduction into beekeeping, honey production & mead making.
Diamond Head State Monument is home to an iconic volcanic crater near Waikiki and is one of Hawaii’s most famous landmarks. It’s a popular hiking trail – 0.8 miles to the top and a little more strenuous than Molly anticipated! If you want to visit, you must make reservations to enter park if you’re not a HI resident (6AM gates open – trail closes at 4PM). Make sure to go early, it’s a narrow path that is used to go both up and down.
If you hike on a Saturday, you can visit the KCC Farmer’s Market (Kapiʻolani Community College) following your venture. Every Saturday 7:30AM – 11AM you can find local produce, handmade goods, coffee, snacks, etc.
The Abhasa Spa at Royal Hawaiian is the only spa in Honolulu offering luxurious treatments in a serene tropical garden setting. Molly didn’t love it here; she thought the tropical garden setting was beautiful, but too many outside noises interfered with the serenity. She loved her service though!
Molly enjoyed a four course tasting menu dinner at the Moana Surfrider Resort at the Beachhouse. Located outside the back of the hotel overlooking the Pacific Ocean you can catch amazing sunset views from your table. As a good Boozy Blonde, she ordered the wine pairing to go with her meal.
Following dinner, she attended Auana – Cirque du Solei, which was a beautiful tribute to the Hawaiian culture with incredible performers. To Molly, it seemed the show highlighted the four elements, earth, air, water, and fire, with different performances. She also thought each performer was incredibly beautiful! There is a VIP experience available which includes a 90-minute reception with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres as well as opportunities to meet the performers!
To round our her trip, Molly enjoyed drinks at two local breweries, Waikiki Brewing and Maui Brewing. She had visited these breweries on Maui as well. This time she enjoyed a Mai Tai at Waikiki Brewing, and was able to enjoy her favorite, Mango Stickee Rice IPA, one more time at Maui Brewing. Maui Brewing is located in the Outrigger Waikiki Beachcomber Hotel, which is home to Auana. And fun fact, Maui Brewing provides the food and beverages and is the host for the VIP Experience mentioned above!
If you find yourself on Oahu, the girls guarantee you’ll enjoy your time there. One of the most beautiful places in the world with so much to enjoy – boozy or not! Have you been to any of the places the girls recommended? Send them a message, and let them know what you think! Or send them a rec for a place they missed! Cheers!
Welcome to another magical episode brought to you by the Boozy Blondes! In this episode Molly recaps how much fun she and her mom had at Walt Disney World’s Sangria University at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. Tune in to this episode to learn what, exactly, Sangria University is, what to expect when you enroll, tips to ensure you make the most of your experience and the pros and cons of the class.
The DOE is, surprise! Sangria! The Boozy Blondes have a delicious recipe from their friend Kelly…delicious and dangerous! Here is the recipe if you’d like to indulge:
750ml Red Wine (Red Blend recommended)
½ cup brandy
½ cup Grand Marnier
½ cup orange juice
Squeeze juice from (1) lemon and (1) lime
Chop (1) apple, (1) pear or summer berries and add to sangria
Orange slices for garnish
Make ahead one day for alcohol to mellow. Add Grand Marnier floater on top!
Sangria University is held at Three Bridges Bar & Grill at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort. It’s a 90-minute class of the history of sangria making (with a little Disney history sprinkled in) that includes four samples of a variety of sangrias and a light appetizer. You learn about each sangria on the flight – each a different variety including a red, a white, a rosé and a sparkling sangria. The class concludes with a final exam where students create their own sangrias choosing from a variety of wine bases, liquor options, enhancements and flavors.
It’s only offered on Saturday and Sunday afternoons and costs $69 – $79 per person which includes tax and gratuity. When you sign up, about $10 of your tuition goes to your instructor as a tip.
This class is catered to adults. Guests under 21 can attend, but they are charged the same price as adults and given a nonalcoholic substitute for sangria.
Molly shares a few tips in this episode to make the most of your class:
Enroll early – up to 60 days out. There are only 2 classes each weekend and they fill up.
Give yourself plenty of time to get to Coronado Springs – it’s kind of an outlier resort without boats or monorails or sky buckets to get you there.
Wait inside at the resort until about 10-15 minutes before your class. There is nothing to protect you from the elements while you wait for the Sangria University staff to let you in Three Bridges.
Take your time sampling the sangria – although the ice will melt and water down the sangrias, the history lesson is received much better while sipping on them.
Same thing with your snack – it’s not a lot, so take your time, you can’t order anything else during class.
Be prepared to keep yourself entertained in the time between the lesson and final exam. Your instructor must visit all the tables to get the custom orders, so if you’re not one of the first, you’ll be waiting a while.
While this is a pre-paid event, be prepared to potentially spend some more day of – extra tip for your instructor, premium spirits for your final exam, extra sangria on your way out.
Be sure to listen to this episode to hear the pros and cons of the class (in Molly’s opinion) and see if you scored as well as Chrissy did on her Sangria pop quiz! To catch highlights from the class, find the Sangria University reel on the Boozy Blondes’ Instagram. Be sure to message the girls if you attend Sangria University and share what you think – especially tips for the final exam Cheers!
Boozy Blondes 