Category 11: Beverage (Not Water)

Eric	Richard	Khurram	Derrick
Banana Berry Smoothie	Miller High Life (Champagne of Beers)	Jack Daniels	Get up and Goji Smoothie
Orange Juice	Johnnie Walker Blue	Coca-Cola	Chocolate Milkshake
V8 Acai Mixed Berry	Cherry Slurpee	Mango Juice	Scotch

Round 1: Eric starts off the category with Banana Berry Smoothie from Tropical Smoothie. I’ve never had this smoothie so I cannot really comment on it, except to say that a smoothie is probably a good choice in the first round. Its refreshing, healthy and could perhaps be a meal substitute in a pinch. As for my choice of Miller High Life, the Champagne of Beers, it is also refreshing, and while not healthy, it too could probably be used a meal substitute in a pinch (I know. I’ve done it). Perfect for any occasion, the High Life can be busted out while watching a ballgame, at a restaurant or even at a dinner party. Three more reasons to love this beer besides its perfect taste and crisp bite: 1) It comes in a mini champagne type bottle. 2) Voted best beer by the esteemed Petros and Money radio show after it survived their tournament of beers. 3) It has hilarious commercials like this one, where High Life selling privileges have been revoked. After all, if you mess with the High Life, the High Life will mess with you. Khurram followed up my pick with Jack Daniels, one of my favorite forms of hard liquor. Either straight up or in a Jack and Coke, you will likely not find a better everyday hard liquor than my good friend Jack. Finally, Derrick bookends the round with Smoothies, the Get up and Goji Smoothie to be more specific. Goji Berries are considered to be a superfood filled with antioxidants. They are also good for your liver and would probably be pretty beneficial for Khurram and I after our respective selections. Overall, this round for me comes down to Miller High Life and Jack Daniels. I debated both before I picked, but there are other hard liquors out there (Rum for example) that I could substitute for Jack. There is no substitute for The Champagne of Beers.

Round 2: Derrick sticks with drinks from a straw and goes with the classic Chocolate Milkshake. This is an excellent pick, and its hard to imagine anyone who wouldn’t like to have a chocolate milkshake at some point in time. Khurram completes his one-two punch with coca-cola. Coke is likely the most popular soda in the world. Its popularity growing even after cocaine was removed from its ingredients, a feat few others could have achieved. Additionally, now I lose out on any possibility of hard liquor and coke. Rum and Pepsi just doesn’t have the same taste. Nevertheless, something tells me I can get by with a $75 shot of Johnnie Walker Blue. That’s right, Johnnie Walker Blue is the finest whisky in all the land, with a 750 ml anniversary bottle retailing for around $3700. Johnnie Walker Blue is Johnnie Walker’s premium blend and each bottle is serial numbered and sold in a silk-lined box accompanied by a certificate of authenticity. Blends used are up to 60 years old. 86 proof. Perfection. Eric takes Orange Juice to close out Round 2. The ultimate breakfast beverage is perfect for a guy who is usually very regimented with his breakfast habits. This was definitely a solid round 2 pick.

Round 3: Eric’s last pick continues his health trend with V8 Acai Mixed Berry Juice. One reads V8 on the label and assumes this beverage won’t be very good as a juice, but in reality Acai Mixed Berry is deceptively good. Straying from alcohol (for a change) in the final round, I wanted to choose a drink that could be both refreshing and sweet. I debated on Gatorade for a moment, but felt like a Cherry Slurpee is more enjoyable. Except of course for the inevitable brain freeze. Khurram took Mango Juice in the third round, and I don’t really have much to say on it except that it is maybe my fourth favorite juice, behind Orange, Apple and Grape. Its good though. Derrick’s selection of Scotch is a quizzical one of sorts. Scotch is a type of whisky originating from Scotland. Considering we already have two whiskeys off the board, I can see the need for securing a hard liquor, but one wonders if he wouldn’t have been better off choosing a beer instead.

Overall Impressions: As the resident alcoholic, I am most pleased with my selections. Sure, I would have liked to go with the trifecta of Miller High Life, Jack Daniels and Johnnie Walker Blue, but two out of three isn’t bad. And I got the two I wanted most out of those three. The Cherry Slurpee was not a bad selection, but I think I might’ve rather chosen Apple Juice. Derrick went heavy with the smoothie type drinks. These multifaceted drinks are good selections and can satisfy two separate cravings. Plus you could always pour a little scotch into the Goji smoothie, what with the benefits Goji Berries provide to your liver and all. Khurram had three solid, middle of the road picks. There are better whiskeys out there than Jack, but for the everyman Jack is usually the go to liquor, tastes great in coke and goes down smooth either straight or in shots. You like Eric’s selection if you are concerned about health. Sure all of his drinks might be a little high in the fructose category, but there is not a drop of alcohol to be found in his selections. Additionally, one would imagine that most of that sugar content is natural. Its another solid category for this group of drafters with no major mistakes and everyone gearing their selections towards their personal preferences.