As colder weather creeps in and patios close down, bars and restaurants across the country are streamlining to-go options and getting creative. One example of this is the highly-anticipated, Chicago-based ready-to-drink (RTD) craft cocktail service, Blue Blazer, who’s bringing signature cocktails from the city’s favorite watering holes right to guests’ homes.

Founded by hospitality attorneys Brian Troglia, Joe Kreeger, and Josh Kaplan, who’ve spent nearly two decades representing the most beloved cocktail havens in the city, Blue Blazer is pleased to announce their debut line of RTD craft cocktails, available beginning November 6, 2020.

Featuring drinks from Chicago icons Queen Mary Tavern, Lula Cafe, Pub Royale, Federales, Estereo and Billy Sunday, as well as Blue Blazer branded classics, the pre-bottled cocktails will be sold at these local establishments for carryout and through online delivery platforms including GrubHub, Caviar, DoorDash and more. The line includes three new white-label cocktails from Blue Blazer’s esteemed in-house Beverage Partner, Michael Rubel(Estereo, The Violet Hour, Longman & Eagle, Lone Wolf, Big Star), who oversees production to ensure each bottled cocktail tastes just like the ones you know and love. Whether you’re a Mai Tai lover or an Old Fashioned fan, there’s something for everyone from Blue Blazer.

BLUE BLAZER’S DEBUT RTD CRAFT COCKTAIL LINE

$11-22 (200mL), $20-40 (375 mL), $35-70 (750 mL)
*200 mL averages 1-2 servings per bottle
*375 mL averages 2-4 servings per bottle / 750 mL averages 4-8 servings per bottle*

Queen Mary Tavern Navy Strength Old Fashioned

Smith & Cross Navy Strength Rum, Hayman’s of London Navy Strength Gin, Demerara, Aromatic Bitters

Pub Royale Royale Cup

Letherbee Royale Cup, Gin, Ginger, Strawberry, Cucumber, Cane Sugar, Lime, Carbonation

Lula Cafe Bloody Mary

Lula 1999 Bloody Mary Mix, CH Vodka

Federales Margarita

Tequila, Orange Curaçao, Agave Nectar, Lime

Billy Sunday Old Fashioned

Driftless Glen Bourbon, Zucca Rabarbaro, Demerara, Bitters

Estereo Mezcal #1

Mezcal, Destilado de Agave, Agua de Jamaica, Vermouth, Cane Sugar, Lime, Carbonation

Blue Blazer Mai Tai

 Oaxaca Aguardiente de Caña, Uruapan Charanda Blanco Rum, Orange Curaçao, Almond, Cane Sugar, Lime, Maldon Sea Salt

Blue Blazer Moscow Mule

CH Vodka, Ginger, Cane Sugar, Lime, Carbonation

Blue Blazer Old Fashioned
Wheated Driftless Glen Single Barrel Bourbon, Demerara, Bitters  

MORE ON BLUE BLAZER: In 2019, Blue Blazer co-founders Brian Troglia, Joe Kreeger, and Josh Kaplan saw a gap in the market for high quality, restaurant-branded, ready-to-drink cocktails while listening to a speech about trends in food and alcohol delivery. When the pandemic hit in 2020, the demand for carryout and delivery food and alcohol options exponentially increased. Temporary legislation in Illinois currently allows bars and restaurants to sell mixed drinks via to-go programs, but this program, which only last until June 2021, prohibits the delivery of mixed drinks. Blue Blazer effortlessly fills this void by partnering with top bars and restaurants to bottle their cocktails for in-house, carryout and delivery sales. This process allows Blue Blazer to help independent bars and restaurants navigate the complexities of manufacturing, packaging, and delivering their RTD cocktails to-go, as well as setting up a viable long-term revenue stream. Blue Blazer’s white-label and co-branded bottled cocktails afford restaurants the ability to immediately—and profitably—enhance delivery sales, as well as the delivery experience, by bringing cocktails designed to be enjoyed with a restaurant’s food into the guest’s home. With the ability for a restaurant to sell not only their own cocktails but cocktails from other brands, including Blue Blazer classics, Blue Blazer allows a restaurant to immediately start a robust, diverse cocktail-to-go program legally approved for third-party delivery. More information can be found at www.drinkblueblazer.com and @drinkblueblazer on Instagram.

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