My mother has been showing quite a fondness for the martini as of late. It all started with the pomegranate martini, shaken up with pure pomegranate juice, a splash of Cointreau and a healthy helping of vodka… And now, it’s on. She’s already acquired an admirable collection of different martini glasses for every occasion – fancy-shmancy, sunny poolside, evenings on the porch, etc… and now every time I stop by, I can’t leave without sharing at least one drink and a chat.

As Mother’s Day was approaching, I hummed and hawed over what to get… she’s a woman who’s got it all, and I always like to try and beat what I gave to her the year prior. Luckily for me, when she finds a new interest, she really gets into it… so something revolving around cocktails would probably be a sure bet as a great gift.

Although she had a number of lovely martini glass sets, she didn’t yet have stainless steel martini glasses, so I opted to start with those. They keep your cocktails colder for longer, plus they won’t break, so they’re perfect for spirits poolside. Then, I decided to get her a recipe book so she could mix up some new drinks and find a few more favorites. KegWorks has quite a bit to choose from, and they all looked great, but for Mom I went with the New Classic Cocktails book, complete with 50 new, sophisticated cocktail incarnations. Once she’d ripped through the wrapping paper, Mom couldn’t wait to dive into this extensive collection of concoctions – “Oooh! I love Manhattans,” she cooed, nose in book – in fact, she nearly forgot about the rest of her yet unopened gifts!

I was so excited about my Mother’s Day idea that I couldn’t stop there… so I picked out a selection of cocktail mixers to round off the gift. I figured the Fee Brothers Cocktail Mixers Starter Set would be a perfect way to begin – it comes with 6 different mixers for a slew of drink combinations, so it would be sure to keep her ecstatic about trying new drinks. And finally, to top it all off, I wrapped up a bottle of dirty martini mix called Dirty Sue – I just knew she would get a kick out of it since her name is Susie – and she certainly did!

And so, armed with her new mixers, recipes and glasses, a raucous and entertaining (to say the least!) Mother’s Day celebration ensued…