Ryan Reynolds is celebrating the return of the McRib in a big way. As the beloved sandwich made its return to McDonald’s menus nationwide on Monday, Nov. 1, the Deadpool actor marked the occasion with the creation of a McRib-inspired cocktail, dubbed the Aviation Gin Riblet, unofficially celebrating the McRib’s 40th anniversary.
The actor, who hails from Vancouver, where the McRib unfortunately won’t be on the menu (sorry neighbors to the north, the McRib is only returning to U.S. menus) debuted the new drink on Tuesday, saying in a video, “not sure gin and barbecue sauce go together? Well, let me Mc-prove it.” Described as “a delicious cocktail that tastes like Aviation Gin and a Bloody Mary made love in your mouth,” the Gin Riblet cocktail calls for four ounces of tomato juice, a half-ounce of barbecue sauce, one-and-a-half ounces of Aviation American gin, and just a squeeze of lemon juice. The ingredients, as Reynolds showed, are added to a shaker full of ice, shaken, and then strained into a glass. The cocktail is finished with a pickle and a pearl onion.
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Reynolds’ new drink, which already has plenty of fans according to the comments on the video, came just a day after the McRib officially made its return to McDonald’s. The sandwich, which features a seasoned boneless pork slathered in tangy barbecue sauce and topped with slivered onions and tart pickles, originally debuted in 1981 in Kansas City, Kansas. It quickly became a fan-favorite and reached international fandom in 1994 when it was brought back in honor of the theatrical release of the live-action Flintstones film. Despite the global fanfare, however, the McRib wasn’t meant to last, and after becoming a staple of the McDonald’s menu in the ’90s and early 2000s, the McRib went on three farewell tours in 2005, 2006, and 2007.
Much to fans’ delight, McDonald’s announced in October that the McRib would be making a comeback to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The sandwich officially returned to U.S. menus on Monday, with McDonald’s helping to launch the sandwich into the 21st century with a contest for McDonald’s first-ever NFTs or non-fungible tokens, in which customers have the chance to score “digital versions of the fan favorite sandwich – almost as saucy as the McRib itself.”
Reynolds’ celebration of the McRib is not the first time he has created a cocktail to celebrate a big event. Earlier this year, the Free Guy actor hilariously marked Father’s Day with the creation of The Vasectomy cocktail, which he described as the “mother of all cocktails.” Aviation American Gin was founded in 2006 by Christian Krogstad and Ryan Magarian. In 2018, Reynolds acquired a majority stake. While Diego acquired the company in 2020, Reynolds has still remained involved.
