C H R O N O F H O R S E . C O M S U M M E R 2 014 123
FEED ROOM
Beer and wine are fine, but if you need a little
something special for your next equestrian event, try
wetting whistles with these tasty tipples.
B y K AT N E T Z L E R A N D L I S A S L A D E
Y Z
Modern Iterations
of Classic
Cocktail Creations
I
f ever there was a professional-grade tailgater, Aaron
Nix-Gomez would be him. His annual Keeney/Nix-Go-
mez party won the Best Tailgate Award at the Interna-
tional Gold Cup Races in The Plains, Va., every October for
five consecutive years.
Nix-Gomez, who runs the wine blog HogsHeadWine.
Wordpress.com, also created a blog specifically dedicated to
his eighth annual Gold Cup tailgate, Timber + Brush (Tim-
berandBrush.Wordpress.com), in 2012.
"While I always serve wine, I also have fun with mixed
drinks and beer," said Nix-Gomez, of Silver Spring, Md. "Our
drinks were the Tennessee Brush Jumper and Virginia Timber
Jumper, reflecting the fences and different locations where the
race had taken place [since its inception in 1930]. The Ten-
nessee is certainly more fall-oriented, with the cinnamon, but
the Virginia is fresher.
"I've always had liquor at the party, but this was the first
time I bottled it in bulk ahead of time," he continued. "They still
looked good on race day. I find at race time people just want
to pour a drink, not mix it. So I used 1-liter swing-top bottles,
which I kept on ice in an old steel drawer, and we drank them
out of Weck canning jars. I must admit they were a big hit!"
THE TENNESSEE BRUSH JUMPER
& THE VIRGINIA TIMBER JUMPER
For
Your
Next
Tailgate
AARON
NIX-GOMEZ
PHOTO
