You’ve heard the phrase “don’t drink the Kool-Aid.” Maybe you’ve even said it.

But where did it actually come from?

In Episode 8 of True Mocktails, we’re going down one of our darkest rabbit holes yet: the tragedy at Jonestown, the history of Peoples Temple, and how an event that took the lives of more than 900 people eventually became a casual phrase we use to describe blindly following something.

And then there’s the detail that surprises almost everybody:

It wasn’t actually Kool-Aid.

We’re talking about what was really documented in the drink, how Kool-Aid became permanently attached to the story anyway, and why the phrase we still use today leaves out so much of what actually happened — including coercion, manipulation, fear, and the people who never had a choice.

This episode is heavier than our usual round of True Mocktails, but it’s a story worth understanding beyond the shorthand.

So grab your good glass, get comfortable, and come down the rabbit hole with me.

Featured drink: Grape Kool-Aid
Host: your digital home bartender, Princess

Salu. Let me take a sip.

Content note: This episode discusses mass death, coercion, murder, child deaths, and the Jonestown tragedy.

Follow Thirsty Homebody and keep the conversation going:

Instagram: www.instagram.com/thirstyhomebody
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@thirstyhomebody
Threads: www.threads.com/@thirstyhomebody
Facebook: www.facebook.com/thirstyhomebody
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThirstyHomebody

If this episode sent you down the rabbit hole too, share it with the same person you’d share a drink with.

Question for the Drinkers and Thinkers: Before this episode, did you know it wasn’t actually Kool-Aid?

Before Halloween parties had fog machines, themed cocktails, and somebody’s cousin showing up dressed as a “sexy” version of something that absolutely did not need a sexy version…there was the punch bowl.

And apparently, that bowl was doing a LOT more than holding drinks.

In Episode 7 of TRUE MOCKTAILS, Princess — aka Thirsty Homebody — is digging into the history of Halloween punch and how one giant communal bowl became the center of the party.

We’re going all the way back to the early history of punch, when sharing from one bowl was part drink, part hospitality, and part social event.

Then we’re bringing it into early American Halloween celebrations, where house parties were filled with fortune-telling games, courtship traditions, apple cider, spooky decorations, and — you guessed it — punch.

Because old-school Halloween parties were basically part spooky season, part matchmaking event, and part “girl…who invited all these people?” 😂

We’re talking about:

🎃 Where punch came from and why it was meant to be shared
🎃 How the punch bowl became a symbol of hospitality
🎃 Early Halloween house parties and spooky party traditions
🎃 Fortune-telling and courtship games because apparently Halloween used to be a dating app
🎃 The role women played in organizing and shaping Halloween parties
🎃 Apple cider, Prohibition, and changing American drinking culture
🎃 And how the punch bowl eventually became part drink station, part decoration, and part entertainment

For today’s sip, I’m drinking my Hocus Pocus Punch, because obviously we cannot discuss Halloween punch without having something spooky in the glass.

You can find the drink recipes and more Thirsty Homebody content over on YouTube.

So grab whatever you’re sipping and come hang out.

Because around here, we’re not just drinking.

We’re thinking, too.

🎙️ TRUE MOCKTAILS
Hosted by Princess, aka Thirsty Homebody

TRUE MOCKTAILS explores the history, culture, strange traditions, mysteries, scandals, and wild stories hiding inside the things we drink.

Come hang out with Thirsty Homebody:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thirstyhomebody
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thirstyhomebody
Threads: https://www.threads.com/@thirstyhomebody
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thirstyhomebody
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThirstyHomebody

Follow TRUE MOCKTAILS so you don’t miss the next story hiding inside your glass.

Pumpkin spice didn’t just become a flavor.

It became a season.

The second it shows up, suddenly we want sweaters, candles, crunchy leaves, cute mugs, and a drink that tastes like somebody put October in a cup.

But how did a simple blend of spices go from something we used in pie…to the unofficial mascot of fall?

In Episode 6 of TRUE MOCKTAILS, Princess — aka Thirsty Homebody — is getting into The Pumpkin Spice Story.

We’re talking about where pumpkin spice actually came from, how it became connected to pumpkin pie, when brands realized they could turn fall into a whole experience, and how seasonal marketing helped transform pumpkin spice into the cultural phenomenon we know today.

Because at this point, pumpkin spice isn’t really just about cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves.

It’s about nostalgia.

It’s about that first little hint that fall is coming.

It’s about buying a drink in August even though it is still 87 degrees outside because spiritually…you have moved on. 😂

And maybe that’s what makes pumpkin spice so powerful.

Sometimes we’re not buying the flavor.

We’re buying the anticipation.

For this episode, I’m sipping on my Pumpkin Pie Dirty Soda — a creamy, dessert-inspired drink that takes those familiar pumpkin pie flavors and puts them somewhere completely different.

Want the recipe? Head over to the Thirsty Homebody YouTube channel and make one with me.

Because around here, we’re not just drinking.

We’re thinking, too.

🎙️ TRUE MOCKTAILS
Hosted by Princess, aka Thirsty Homebody

TRUE MOCKTAILS explores the history, culture, strange traditions, mysteries, scandals, and wild stories hiding inside the things we drink.

Come hang out with Thirsty Homebody:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thirstyhomebody
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thirstyhomebody
Threads: https://www.threads.com/@thirstyhomebody
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thirstyhomebody
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ThirstyHomebody

Follow TRUE MOCKTAILS so you don’t miss the next story hiding inside your glass.