Christmas Alcohol Pairings: Open World Games

It’s almost Christmas once again, so what better way to spend it than with a nice drink and your favourite games? But, have you ever thought about marrying the two more than ever before, to choose the ultimate beverage to accompany your playtime? Read on, and in this article we’ll look at drinks to go with this years’ most popular sprawling open world games.

Red Dead Redemption 2

The sprawling open world of Red Dead Redemption 2 is possibly one of the greatest ever, which I said in my review. It’s slow, methodical, and perhaps too realistic in some places, but it’s an enjoyable universe to lose yourself in over Christmas.

Leave the beer in the fridge for this one, and join the cowboys with their good old fashioned whiskey. If you have some moonshine brewing in your bath, that could work too, but I’d rather stick to some Kentucky bourbon. There’s a few quality choices to choose from that are available in your local supermarket, even Amazon has a decent selection. Buffalo Trace is a personal favourite, but you can’t go far wrong with Four Roses either, particularly their small batch and private selection offerings. You have to drink it neat, though. No ice, no watering down. It’ll put some hairs on your chest – both men and women.

The whiskey that was actually available in the Wild West was a lot different from what he can buy today, mind. Tobacco juice was a popular ingredient, and in some, gunpowder. I wouldn’t recommend trying to produce this concoction at home, though; I don’t want to be cited as the reason you’ve blown your brand new kitchen up.

Spider-Man

This is a tough one because Spider-Man tends to refrain from drinking. After all, pissed whilst taking down The Green Goblin isn’t going to go well. He’s not exactly Deadpool.

After a bit of digging (read: furious Googling), I found that there is actually an issue where Peter Parker gets a bit tipsy. Web of Spider-Man #38, 1988. Peter Parker attends a party and gets drunk on punch, and then runs off to fight the Hobgoblin, almost injuring some innocent civilians in the process. So I’m taking that and running with it.

A decent fruit punch doesn’t take a lot of effort to make, and is fairly cheap too. The quick and easy way is to buy a few bottles of fruit juice from the supermarket – orange, pineapple, and other exotic fruits always go well together – along with a few strawberries chucked in and some orange or tangerine slices. As for alcohol, you could lump for vodka, or get some spiced rum to spice things up a bit. Make sure you’re liberal with it too, unless you’re letting your kids sample some. But hey, it’s Christmas, don’t be a scrooge.

Assassin’s Creed Odyssey

Do you know what the most popular drink was in ancient Greece? How all those great thinkers got their ideas?

Wine! Yes, glorified grape juice is the source of much of today’s intelligence. Mead was also popular, which is slightly different – this is fermented honey, usually with other added flavourings. But for that true old timey feeling, get out a decent bottle of wine and put away a couple of bottles as you fight in the battle between Athens and Sparta.

I have to be honest though and admit that exactly which wine you should be choosing is lost on me. Don’t they all taste the same? Regardless, red wine is definitely what you should be aiming for (I do know that there are different colours, obviously…), and to make it truly in line with our Greek friends, get a period Kylix or Kantharos. Glasses are soooo 14th Century.

Remember, GameGrin only endorses responsible drinking. Be safe, have fun, and look after each other.