Bob Sehlinger's Blog

The Christmas season is my absolute favorite time of the year. Growing up, one of the little things I loved most was getting an Advent calendar and counting down the days until Santa would be coming down the chimney. As I grew older, I had to leave Advent calendars in the rear view mirror,* but I still miss that daily countdown building anticipation to the big day. So, we’re going to start a virtual Advent calendar here at TouringPlans. For 2014, we are going to countdown our favorite drinks at Walt Disney World and the Universal Orlando Resort.

Criteria: Drinks can be alcoholic or nonalcoholic. Drinks can come from any venue on property as well as the Disney Cruise Line. Bonus points awarded for atmosphere where drink is served. Any drink with glow cubes is immediately disqualified. Ready? Let’s go!

DAY NINE: PBR in a Paper Bag at Cabana Bay’s Atomic Tonic

Pabst Blue Ribbon and its paper bag koozie. (photo by Brandon Glover)

No one is going to mistake a can of Pabst Blue Ribbon beer for top shelf alcohol, but in a working man’s terms, it gets the job done. We love the new Loews Cabana Bay Beach Resort at Universal, and one of the many surprises of the retro-themed hotel was discovering a paper bag koozie for PBR at the Atomic Tonic pool side bar. Cabana Bay is the new standard for what a “value” resort can be, so we have no problem popping the top of a 16 ounce can of American’s “value” beer and enjoying the Orlando weather.

The insulated paper bag koozie. (photo by Brandon Glover)

Drink up! (photo by Brandon Glover)

Atomic Tonic poolside bar at Loews Cabana Bay Beach Resort. (photo by Brandon Glover)

PREVIOUS DRINKS OF CHRISTMAS:

DAY ONE: Shark Attack at Chez Alcatraz

DAY TWO: Grand Marnier Slush at Epcot

DAY THREE: Flaming Moe at Moe’s Tavern

DAY FOUR: Sunken Treasure on the Disney Cruise Line

DAY FIVE: Mai Tai at Emeri’s Tchoup Chop

DAY SIX: Avocado Margarita at La Cava del Tequila

DAY SEVEN: Pumpkin Fizz at the Three Broomsticks

DAY EIGHT: Old Fashioned at the Belle Vue Lounge

See you tomorrow for the next entry into the 25 Drinks of Christmas Countdown, where we are going to head into Epcot’s World Showcase. If you had fun, be sure to check out The Magic, The Memories, and Merch! and Saturday Six articles, or, for your listening pleasure, check out the Pardon the Pixie Dust podcast. Your humble author can also be seen producing typos at an inhuman rate on Twitter: @derekburgan

Special thanks to crack staff photographer Brandon Glover and Megan Stump for their invaluable assistance with this article. Be sure to also check out Brandon on The Park Blogger podcast with co-hosts Aengus Mackenzie and Brian Carey.

*That is an absolutely lie. I still buy an advent calendar every year with chocolates in it, and I also buy an annual box of Christmas Crunch, but we’ll keep that between us.