Popularity
The cocktails are in great demand among tourists visiting New Orleans and are promoted regularly in publications with interstate and international circulation, including on major television networks, in movies, in magazines, in newspapers, and on the Internet. Hand grenades are commonly associated with Mardi Gras, and they are consumed in large amounts during that time. Gray Line Worldwide features the Hand Grenade in its "New Orleans' Original Cocktail Walking Tour".
Cocktail enthusiasts' opinions about the sweet and potent drink range from classifying it as a "terrible drink" (along with another similarly unique French Quarter cocktail, the Hurricane) to being "well worth the hangover". It is described as tasting "exactly like an Ecto-Cooler Hi-C drink, and will put you on your ass. Even the bar itself says not to drink more than 4 in an entire night."
Tropical Isle's Website offers a prepared Hand Grenade mix for home use. It comes packaged with instructions and a drinking guide. The home mix is the only authorized drink mix, and Tropical Isle limits the amount of mix that customers may buy; resale is prohibited. Souvenir yard cups are sold separately at Tropical Isle, its licensed establishments, and its Website. The yard cup design appears on Mardi Gras merchandise, T-shirts, refrigerator magnets, a canned energy drink, ceramic collectibles, and many other items.
The influence of the Hand Grenade extends beyond New Orleans. For example, Tony’s Liquors in Shreveport sells a seasonal daiquiris called the "Swamp Bomb" created by Perry Woods, a former Bourbon Street bartender, with a clear nod to rival New Orleans favorites like the Hand Grenade.
The Hand Grenade has entered popular culture as well. Rapper Ludacris mentions drinking hand grenades in "Pimpin' All Over the World", a song from his The Red Light District album: "...and at night I'm in New Orleans drinkin' Hand Grenades."
Read more about this topic: Hand Grenade (cocktail)
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