Tom Hanks’ strange cocktail creation
From Ryan Reynolds’ Aviation Gin and George Clooney’s Casamigos tequila to Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston’s Dos Hombres mezcal via Dwayne Johnson’s Teremana, movie stars launching their own bespoke brand of alcohol has become increasingly popular in recent years. Tom Hanks hasn’t gone that far quite yet, but he did share his own cocktail concoction that he swears by.
Confirming that he’s not overly partial to the hard stuff in an interview with Stephen Colbert while also revealing himself to be a fan of reality TV, Hanks explained that he came up with his idea when his family visited Café Carlyle in New York City and had “a celebratory bottle of champagne brought by”. He said: “I’m not a big drinker, so I usually have a Diet Coke. So I have a little bit of caffeine, Diet Coke in a glass, and I sip that through the night.”
The prospect of complementary champagne soon changed his mind, though, especially when “they brought the nice flutes”. Name-dropping his reality series of choice, Hanks offered that “it was like the last episode of The Bachelor, pouring all this stuff around, and I just had this Diet Coke”.
Finally relenting, he ended up joining in: “I said, ‘Oh, give me a shot of champagne in there, for crying out loud!”
Immediately labelled as “insane” by his nearest and dearest for mixing a shot of champagne with Diet Coke, the two-time Academy Award winner remained nonplussed: “I said, ‘Well, I may be insane, but I want to celebrate the season.” Of course, his curiosity piqued, and Colbert felt obligated to try the unusual combination for himself.
Thinking it should be called “The Tom Hanks” for obvious reasons, the Forrest Gump star clarified that he’d already given it a name: “We were debating what the name of it should be, and I came up with it. Because it is Coke and champagne, it’s obviously Diet Cokagne.”
To his shock, Colbert was won over by the “strangely, strikingly, shamefully, good” Hanks creation, praising it for being “so refreshing”. He also lauded the Diet Cokagne for offering the best of both worlds: “You get that little caffeine too, man. Keeps you going through the champagne.”
Cracking jokes on his medical history, Hanks wondered aloud: “What’s better for type two diabetes than a little shot of champagne in your Diet Coke?” The recipe, as you’d expect given its two-ingredient nature, is every bit as simple as it sounds. All you need – according to Hanks at least – is a few ice cubes and roughly a third-full can of Diet Coke. One shot of champagne later, and you have yourself a Hanks-endorsed, tasted, and certified Diet Cokagne.
An acquired taste, to be sure, but if it’s good enough for ‘America’s Dad,’ then why not?
