This Is The Best Type Of Alcohol For Jell-O Shots
How did Jell-O transition from wholesome American dessert to novelty party beverage? Some credit the shot to Tom Lehrer, a mathematician and musical satirist. According to an interview given with SF Weekly, Jell-O shots were Lehrer's way of livening up a dry Christmas party on a D.C. naval base in the mid-1950s. Add a little kick to the Jell-O mold and it's not technically an alcoholic beverage! Lehrer's alleged original concoction involved orange Jell-O and vodka, and under the circumstances, the combo made perfect sense.
If you're looking to disguise the flavor of a spirit in any mixer (even Jell-O), vodka is an ideal choice. Up until recently, the quality of vodka was measured on its neutral nature. Wine Enthusiast explains that it wasn't until May of 2020 that the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau dropped the term "without distinctive character, aroma, taste or color" from their standard definition of of the liquor. So if we're thinking about vodka in the 1950s, the more flavorless the better when it comes to spiking the Christmas Jell-O mold.
Almost any bottle can be blended with gelatin and transformed into a wobbly Jell-O shot
These days, there are Jell-O shot recipes out there that incorporate nearly every spirit behind the bar. Liquor.com says that vodka and white rum are both good options, but at the end of the day, almost any bottle can be blended with gelatin and transformed into a wobbly shot. Since both are fairly neutral spirits they mix well with Jell-O but you can also use flavored spirits. The outlet even suggests making cocktail flavored Jell-O shots.
Spoon University agrees that vodka is the most popular choice when it comes to mixing up a round of these festive shots. A not exactly scientific study was executed by the outlet to determine whether the most common Jell-O and liquor pairing is in fact the best. The findings were honestly shocking. Mixing a variety of wine, beer, and spirits with lime green Jell-O, top honors went to Franzia boxed merlot, followed closely by Budweiser. Honey Jack Daniel's landed at the bottom of the experiment, while (somewhat unsurprisingly) neutral flavored New Amsterdam vodka scored solidly in the center.