I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Boozy Ice Cream

Yes, you read that headline right. Your two favorite vices, ice cream and alcohol, have been combined to make the best boozy cocktails in D.C. The mastermind behind this delicious concoction is none other than Victoria Lai, owner and self-described “icecreampreneur” of Ice Cream Jubilee.

“Most of my best ideas come from taking two things I love and putting them together,” Lai says. “Whether it’s cookie dough and cookies and cream ice cream to make our Cookies and Cookie Dough flavor, or if it’s cocktails and ice cream to make colorful and fun fruity drinks. My inspiration originally was just to make something bright and fruity and summery and fun and different for people.”

Recipe courtesy of Victoria Lai.

Ice Cream Jubilee’s unique flavors provide the perfect companion to many different alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Over the summer, originally in celebration of National Ice Cream Day on July 19, Lai hosted a cocktail class on Instagram Live showing off the drinks. They were a hit, and so Lai continued to provide cocktail recipes to Ice Cream Jubilee customers to try at home. The cocktail classes transitioned from a live format to a pre-recorded one, allowing consumers to go back and recreate the boozy cocktails in their own time.

“People can make these for brunch, they can make them for their Zoom happy hour and everyone can make them together and make their own classes,” Lai states. “I hope that this can give people more freedom.”

Prerecording the IGTV classes allows Lai some freedom, too. As the owner of a small business and mother of two young children, Lai has been busy balancing her home life while trying to pivot Ice Cream Jubilee’s business during the pandemic. She’s enjoyed her extra time at home with her family and reconnecting with old friends via video calls, but she’s also taken the extra time as an opportunity to expand her business.

Recipe courtesy of Victoria Lai.

“We usually use the fall to take a breath, but this time at home has allowed us to do a lot more recipe testing. Just as people at home have been on the internet making sourdough by the loaf, we’ve been busy making new ice cream flavors,” explains Lai. “We’re pivoting, posting more on social media and coming up with all these new recipes.”

Lai is hopeful she can continue coming up with ice cream cocktails, and maybe even partner with other local businesses such as distilleries in the DMV to create take-home cocktail kits. Over the summer, Ice Cream Jubilee and Compass Rose partnered to create a “beer-tail,” combining Tecate beer with cucumber lemon sorbet for a distinctive combination of flavors. Lai is not much of a beer drinker herself, but loves the mixture and thinks other people will be amazed.

“I really hope that everybody tries this because it is beautiful and addictive and surprising, just what we need to take our minds off of things these days.”

Recipe courtesy of Victoria Lai.

Ice Cream Jubilee’s flavors are constantly changing, so be sure to get a few pints of your favorites and be on the lookout for new recipes for all of your cocktail needs as the quarantine continues. Lai and her team at Ice Cream Jubilee know that things are crazy right now, but hope to use their craft for good.

“We want to see where we can make things better with ice cream.”

Long Island Thai Iced Tea

Ingredients:
1/2 ounce vodka
1/2 ounce gin
1/2 ounce white rum
1/2 ounce tequila
Splash of triple sec
Coke or cola soda

Pour spirits over ice in a tall glass. Stir.
Add one generous scoop of Long Island Thai Iced Tea ice cream.
Carefully fill glass with soda and serve with a festive straw.
Try it with Coke and no spirits for a nonalcoholic version.

Ice Cream Jubilee: 4238 Wilson Blvd. #143, Arlington, VA; 301 Water St. SE, DC; 1407 T St. NW, DC;
www.icecreamjubilee.com // @icecreamjubilee on Instagram

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