The Ultimate College Drinking Bucket List

You’re only 21 and in college once, so you better make the most of it. College drinking is very, very different from real world drinking (or it should be if you plan on holding down a job or a relationship). There’s no pressure to drink fancy cocktails, no rules about glassware, and it’s certainly not taboo to play with your drinks. To make sure you’ve truly made college the best years of your life, here’s the ultimate college drinking bucket list. Try not to check it all off in one night—seriously.

Play Beer Pong

It doesn’t matter which type of pong you play—the boring version where you throw the ball into the cups or the much more fun version where you use paddles to play an actually exciting game (we’re not biased or anything)—as long as you get a few games in during your college career. If you start to tire of the classic rules, try mixing it up with one of these variations before you no longer have a disgusting basement to play in.

Drink Boxed Wine

We’re not saying you won’t drink boxed wine once you graduate—especially if your chosen career path is something along the lines of oh, we don’t know, journalism, for example—but this is the time when you can proudly pour from that boxed tap. Crack open the Chillable Red, and slap the bag as you pregame for the rest of your night.

Make Up Your Own (Probably Terrible) Cocktail

Instead of mixing up your go-to blend of not-so-great gin and warm tonic at your next ‘tails event, try coming up with something totally new and all your own out of the contents of whatever’s in your mini fridge. Orange juice, SoCo and Coke? Why not? Whiskey, Sprite and cranberry juice? Go for it. Red Bull, milk and vodka? Well, maybe skip that one.

Drink from an Ice Luge

We hate to break it to you, but most bars don’t offer icy slides as a means of taking Jäger shots. Plus, you’ll eventually start wearing clothes you won’t want to stain with chilly booze run-off. So take advantage of these frosty sculptures while they’re still acceptably at your disposal.

Make and Drink Jungle Juice

If you’re doing it right, you’re ladling this mishmash of spirits and juices (or, more likely, powdered juice concentrate) out of a garbage bag-lined recycling bin. Soon, you’ll have to make real punches with real juice in real punch bowls. Embrace your trash bag lifestyle and underdeveloped palate while you can.

Drink Something Neon

Mad Dog, Boone’s Farm (specifically the tropical blue flavor), Pucker—these brands were made for you, of-age college drinker. So go ahead and enjoy their candy-like flavor with no regrets. Don’t even bother mixing them with anything. In fact, don’t even bother pouring them into a glass. Savor that sugary, buzzy kick straight from the bottle.

When the biggest responsibility you have is writing a five-page paper on “What Is Math, Really?” or “The Way You See the Color Blue Is Different from How I See the Color Blue” or “Volcanoes: How Cool Are They?”, you have the luxury of indulging in the occasional shower beer. Pro tip: Opt for a can instead of a glass bottle. We speak from experience. Painful, bloody experience.

Drink Out of Something That Isn’t a Cup

Shoe beers, frisbee beers, hat beers—when you’re in college, the world is your Solo cup. Yes, drinking out of a used football helmet is gross and unsanitary, but you’ll never again have the chance to funnel a beer through a sequined pump. We promise no one in the real world will ever make you chug from an actual boot—just a super-cute glass one.