New Official Cocktail of The U.S. Open

I don’t support every decision the USGA makes. But when they get it right, as they have with a new U.S. Open cocktail, I’ll be the first to sing their praises.

So let us all join the chorus to start a new tradition – Official Major cocktails.

There is precedent for this. The Kentucky Derby has the Mint Julep. Wimbledon has the Pimms Cup. The U.S. Open Tennis Championship has adopted the Honey Deuce as its unofficial cocktail.

Great sporting events have a personality all their own. Certainly the Masters feels different than any other tournament in the world. The same can be said of The Open.

In fact, the Masters already has an “unofficial” cocktail – The Azalea. It’s a vodka, pineapple, and lemon juice concoction with a splash of grenadine. The color mimics the brilliant hues of the blooming azaleas around the property and reflects the sweet and potent southern hospitality of Augusta National.

So what would the U.S. Open cocktail evoke? I suspect it might have some bite to it. The U.S. Open is notoriously the hardest test in golf. The greens are fast, the rough is tall, and the fairways are narrow.

The U.S. Open is a brown liquor event. You are going to feel it all the way down. It will burn a little, but it will also satisfy.

Introducing the Official Cocktail of the U.S. Open at Brookline – The Dewar’s Lemon Wedge.

1½ oz. DEWAR’S 12-year-old
3 oz. club soda
2 oz. lemonade
Combine ingredients over ice and stir for desired dilution. Garnish with lemon.

Some may say, why not have an American-made spirit? The short answer is that apparently none ponied up the money for the sponsorship. However, I prefer to think the choice of Dewars is a tip-o’-the-cap to Scotland, the home of golf.

I also appreciate how they added in the double entendre of “Wedge” into the name.

Now, of course, this is all about money and there is nothing organic about this sponsorship, but I like the idea. There should be an official cocktail of the U.S. Open.

If Dewars really wants the Lemon Wedge to be the one, they will have to pony up and sponsor it for the next 10 years or so to make it stick in fans minds.

We’ll see if fans embrace the Dewars Lemon Wedge. Good for the USGA in exploring some non-traditional sponsorships.

And if The Lemon Wedge doesn’t suit your taste, here are some other golf-inspired cocktails you can make for yourself.