Drinking Wyoming: The Kitsch, One-Time-Trendy Aprés Ski Cocktails Time Forgot

The 50s, 60s, and 70s were the highpoint of the Après Ski scene -- the post-slope, happy-hour tradition of sipping adult beverages and tasting fondue, preferably while wearing a turtleneck. Here’s a sampling of three classic cocktails, one from each decade of après ski’s golden era.

DM
David Madison

January 25, 20255 min read

1970s apres ski
(Getty Images)

Apres ski, which is French for “after ski,” is the post-slope happy-hour tradition of sipping adult beverages, sampling finger food and listening to music while basking in the glorious alpenglow at sunset. 

This tradition remains, but gone are the turtlenecks, mirrored sunglasses, mustaches and raccoon tans of the 1970s.

Also largely absent from the current apres ski scene are some cocktails time forgot.

While fondue, Irish coffees and Pabst Blue Ribbon remain on aprés ski menus, it’s harder to find certain apres ski cocktails. These beverages are best mixed into the bloodstream when it is still loaded with adrenaline leftover from a day of skiing. 

Here’s an immersive sampling of three classic cocktails, one from each decade of apres ski’s golden era. 

1950s: Vin Chaud

Ski historian Seth Masia told Wine Enthusiast Magazine in 2024 that, “An alcohol-fueled apres ski tradition emerged in the 1950s.”

Back then, drinks on the menu from Switzerland to Colorado included schnapps, brandy and various forms of mulled wine, or as the French say, “vin chaud.”

The tradition of spicing wine goes back to First Century Rome, and this drink is now an often-overlooked pillar of apres ski drink menus. 

It’s not clear how popular mulled wine was among skiers in Wyoming, but in 1956, the Casper Star-Tribune reviewed a new book titled “Cocktail Hour in Jackson Hole,” which was described as a “salty and rollicking tale.”

The skis at the time were “12 feet long and a foot wide, with a housing made of heavy leather,” the author observed, adding that in the East, a polite cocktail hour ran from 5-7 p.m.

In Jackson Hole, “It lasted until March or until jail, whichever comes first.”  

“Cocktail Hour in Jackson Hole” also pointed out that, “Créme de menthe accounts for roughly one-sixth of Jackson Hole bar sales.”

How to make Vin Chaud: 

• 1 quart of red wine

• 1 cup of sugar

• 1/3 ounce Cointreau

• 1/3 ounce vodka

• 1/3 ounce brandy

• 1 1/3 ounce orange syrup

• 2/3 ounce lemon syrup

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 4-5 cloves

Simmer for 10 minutes and garnish with orange slices and cinnamon sticks. Serve in heat-resistant mugs or glasses.

There are almost countless ways to make Vin Chaud, a fancy way of saying mulled wine.
There are almost countless ways to make Vin Chaud, a fancy way of saying mulled wine. (Getty Images)

1960s: The Broken Leg

A headline from a winter 1967 story in the Jackson Hole Guide proclaimed the, “Broken Bones Party Next Tuesday.” 

The “gala” event was hosted by the Seven Levels bar, and promised an appearance from “Art Furrer the wizard of acrobatic skiing.”

Also promised: “Old Crow ‘broken-leg’ mugs will be available to partygoers, and the proceeds from their sale will go to the National Ski Patrol.”

That’s right, the National Ski Patrol launched a national safety campaign in the 1960s that was sponsored by Old Crow Bourbon. 

The “winning bird,” as Old Crow marketed itself, paid for newspaper advertisements and events across the country in support of the National Ski Patrol. 

The campaign sold broken-leg mugs and promoted a new apres ski cocktail called The Broken Leg. 

“Try a Broken Leg, the hot new taste-tickler concocted especially for the apres ski set by Old Crow,” read the company’s advertising copy. 

For those who prefer their whiskey straight, the Old Crow advertisements suggested to, “Just take a handful of snow and add a jigger (2 oz.) of Old Crow.” 

How to make a Broken Leg: 

Start with a smile

• Pour 1 part (1.5 ounces) Old Crow Bourbon Whiskey into mug

• 3 parts hot apple juice

• 4 raisins

• 1 cinnamon stick

• 1 slice of lemon

The Broken Leg cocktail.
The Broken Leg cocktail.

1970s: The Green Hornet

In 1972, the Jackson Hole News published a helpful how-to “Apres Ski Primer,” which offered tips for non-skiers who wanted to get in on the apres ski scene. 

“The first trick is that everyone must think that you ski,” instructed the article, which suggested dressing up in a “fancy sweater” and ski pants with racing stripes to make sure the apres ski look was complete. Faking a recent injury also might help. 

The final tip: “You must not stay in any one bar for too long.”

Luckily, there were plenty to choose from back then. In fact, competition among apres ski bars in Jackson and Teton Village was fierce in the 1970s.

There was Alpenhof, which advertised, “flaming specialties” and an “intimate atmosphere,” with the folk sounds of duo John and Henrietta entertaining the crowd. 

The Hilton Inn Ski Club Lounge promised something called, “Double Bubble Cocktails.” And by 1979, there was evidence of a cultural shift in the apres ski scene as musical tastes started to move away from the John Denver “Rocky Mountain High” singer songwriter material and more toward disco. 

Dietrich’s Disco claimed in the Jackson Hole Guide that, “It’s THE fun gathering place in the valley,” providing, “disco dancing lessons,” “backgammon by the fireplace” and “apres ski drinks.”

Cowboy State Daily could not unearth a 1970s apres ski drink menu from Jackson, but it’s likely that in addition to Chapstick and chardonnay, Green Hornets were also on the lips of apres ski goers back then. 

Cocktailwave.com reports the drink was inspired by a hit television show “The Green Hornet” about a crime-fighting duo, and its bright hue matched the color of Hexcel skis, which were popular at that time. 

Like other splendid apres ski beverages time forgot, there are several different recipes online purporting to be the true 1970s Green Hornet. Here’s a sampling. 

How to make a Green Hornet: 

• .75 ounces whiskey 

• .75 ounces vodka

• .75 ounces gin

• .25 ounces creme de menthe

• Sour mix

• Sparkling lemonade

Add ice to highball glass, pour in all spirits and mixers, stir thoroughly and serve chilled.

For adventuresome souls, there are alternative recipes adding in 1.5 ounces chartreuse, .75 ounces lemon juice and 1 egg white, which is shaken vigorously to the point of emulsification. Finish by straining into a chilled glass and garnishing with a sprig of thyme. 

Two iterations of the Green Hornet.
Two iterations of the Green Hornet. (Getty Images)

Authors

DM

David Madison

Writer

David Madison is an award-winning journalist and documentary producer based in Bozeman, Montana. He’s also reported for Wyoming PBS. He studied journalism at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill and has worked at news outlets throughout Wyoming, Utah, Idaho and Montana.