Totable Tailgate

Load the car with the cooler and chairs. With these make-ahead ideas, you’ll score the first parking space.

BLOODY MARY BAR

Make garnish skewers ahead of time using a variety of classic Bloody Mary fixings, such as cheese cubes, beef sticks, olives, pickled mushrooms, and tiny tomatoes. Then guests can pick their fave combo and plunk it into their cups.

Keep a stash of pony-size beer bottles nearby to serve as a chaser alongside Bloody Marys—the way it’s done in many bars across the Upper Midwest, especially in Bloody-loving Wisconsin.

Extra fixings help guests gussy up the drinks to suit their own tastes. Lemon wedges, hot sauce, steak sauce, and horseradish are popular add-ins.

PARKING LOT PENNANT

Craft a felt pennant banner in your team’s colors to add easy flair to your party. Cut twine or string to the desired length, then cut triangles out of felt until you have as many as needed to fill the string (leaving about 5 inches on both sides for tying and hanging). Snip ½-inch slits near the top outer corners of the triangles, then thread the string through to create a pennant. Hang it from your tailgate, snack table or Bloody Mary bar and let the tailgating begin!

TAILGATE CRATE

Keep a crate or box stocked with tailgate essentials so you’re ready to party at a moment’s notice.

Big-Batch Bloody Marys