Reviewers try their mothers’ favorite drinks during Johnnie Formal

Greetings to our loyal and most trusted readers of The Record’s Variety section. We hinted at this special review last week, and by golly do we think we delivered. Our lovely mothers, Martha Doyle and Suzy Ellis, were with us for a night of dancing, partying and even a good old beer review. For all of our readers, the Bennie Ball and the Johnnie Formal is definitively one of the best nights you’ll have in college. It’s a time to celebrate the people who’ve gotten you through four years of college, and it makes you reflective as your time in college comes to an end. There isn’t much better than seeing your mom, dad, brother, sister, aunt, uncle or whomever you bring dancing like Pat Swayze in “Dirty Dancing” in Guild Hall. The only downside of the night is when Martha tried to bribe the DJ with 20 bucks to play some of her favorite numbers, and it was spent in vain. We had to settle for the cha cha slide. Since our mothers know best (and we would never argue with them on any occasion) we decided to try out some of their favorite go-to drinks for this wonderful occasion.

**Whispering Angel Rosé**

We’ll just say Mrs. Doyle and her son enjoyed the bottle. In fact, it was being passed around by the end of the Johnnie Formal pregame. No cups needed. This French Rosé is a favorite of Martha’s, and even Suzy enjoyed her glass despite not being a rosé gal. Suzy gave a resounding “It’s good!” and Jack walks away with a great flick of his mom drinking out of the bottle. If you want to impress a date, your date’s parents or your own family, bring this bottle home. It makes you seem high class even if you aren’t (like us).

**A Classic Old Fashioned**

Now instead of laying out the entire recipe for Suzy’s Old Fashioned, just look it up online and you’ll be good to go. It’s a nice starter drink to a great night surrounded by even greater company. All four reviewers loved the taste but Suzy, Martha and Jack didn’t want to mix this with the other assortment this early in the evening (some are more responsible than others). Luckily, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed Chuck took the reins to eventually find the bottom of both glasses (mama didn’t raise no Whispering Angel). Like Whispering Angel, if you make one of these puppies for your Bennie/Johnnie date or their parents, you’ll be quickly labeled as sophisticated and charming.

**Blue Moon Citra Wheat**

We’ll be honest: the Whispering Angel, IPAs and Old Fashioneds did not allow us to really give this beer a fair shake. It’s definitely good and a very nice beer to bring home to your mom and the rest of the family. We’re sure it would’ve been great, but we had to stop @ buzzed (and so should you). Consider breaking this brew out on less formal occasions, though. Suzy and her husband Marty were kind enough to invite the crew out to their cabin for brunch the morning after. Unsurprisingly, nobody really wanted to have mimosas (except the dads who were designated drivers the night before… thanks Mike D). It was an excellent bookend to a memorable weekend. To our senior readers, we hope you spent it well. The season is growing rather short, but remember to savor it as we hit the home stretch.