WATCH — A Good Drink: The First Order of Business On Your Business Trip

VICTORY! You have dominated on the field of battle, O Great Road Warrior. You have vanquished the sworn enemies of your business traveling comrades — flight delays, broken Wi-Fi, shifting carry-on size requirements — and emerged intact at your destination. How shall you celebrate your glorious victory? Should you unleash your war cry at the hotel check-in counter? Burn your boarding passes as an offering to the travel gods? Parade shirtless around the lobby, drumming your luggage in a ceremonial dance of triumph?

No. Those things’ll likely get you arrested. Just have a drink.

The post-flight drink is a beloved ritual of the business traveler. Note, we said “drink”; getting blitzed on a business trip isn’t very professional or smart. We’re talking about a nice little capper to your long day of running through the gauntlet that is modern-day travel.

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When I travel for work and don’t have to conduct any sort of business until the next day, I like to belly up to the hotel bar soon after check-in for a cocktail. It serves as a brief, ceremonial christening of my home for the next two-to-seven days. That and it’s much more fun than unpacking.

But one must be careful with that first post-flight drink. It can’t be too strong; the goal is to settle in, not zone out. It has to be refreshing. And certainly not too festive. We’re business travelers, after all — not vacationers or frat boys. And if you’re really lucky, your drink will be interesting enough to spark bar-side conversation, thus promoting fellowship with other road warriors.

A good post-flight drink can help you bond with fellow business travelers (Photo: Thinkstock)

So what drinks would serve that purpose? On my recent business trip to Nashville, I stayed at the centrally located Sheraton Nashville Downtown, which is fresh and spiffy after a recent $25 million dollar renovation. There in the Sheraton Club Lounge overlooking Music City, I found a kindred spirit (ha… “spirit”) who shares my belief in the importance of the post-flight drink.

“It should be smooth and refreshing,” Sheraton Nashville Downtown bartender Erica Rivenburgh told me. “Something that is going to help you relax a little bit after all that stress.”

Sheraton Nashville Downtown bartender Erica Rivenburgh represents for Tennessee with her choice for the perfect cocktail

To that end, Erica suggested two drinks perfect for road warriors looking for a business-like way to unwind after a day of traveling.

THE OLD FASHIONED

Shake with ice: 3 dashes of angostura bitters; 1/4 oz. of simple syrup; and 2 oz. of George Dickel Rye Whisky. Pour into an old-fashioned glass and garnish with an orange peel zest.

(Photo: Thinkstock)

Erica told me you can put any whiskey or bourbon into an old fashioned. “We like to use rye because it’s a little less sweet and we’re already putting in sugar. The rye helps balance that out,” she said. “And we like to use George Dickel because it’s a Tennessee whiskey and you gotta represent where you’re from.”

Spoken like a true Nashville bartender.

THE FRENCH 75

Shake with ice: ¼ oz. simple syrup; ¾ oz. lemon juice, 2 oz. Tanqueray gin. Strain into a champagne flute (or a close facsimile), top with Prosecco, and garnish with a lemon zest.

(Photo: Annie/Flickr)

Another drink well-suited for business travelers. “It’s a little bubbly and very refreshing,” Erica said.

If Erica makes either of these drinks for a business traveler, odds are she’s only making just one. Business travelers are understandably less likely to linger at the bar for very long.

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“They’ll probably have been in meetings all morning, fly here in the afternoon and then have something at 6 a.m. the next day,” Erica said. “So they’ll be a little tired; they’ll have a glass of wine or an old fashioned” before they call it a night.

But such small indulgences are one of the small pleasures of business travel. And gosh knows we need to take them where we can get them — especially if it’s in a glass.

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