Drinks Around the World

Ring in the New Year 24 times over

What happens only once a year yet 24 times in a day? The New Year. No matter the language, the cultural background, or the geographic location, almost everyone rings in the New Year at midnight on December 31. So celebrate it time zone by time zone with some place-specific drinks and snacks. (And the requisite common-sense warning: Though we like a good cocktail as much as the next person, we do not actually advise that you drink all this alcohol in a 24-hour stretch.) Happy New Year!

Time Zone by Time Zone

Starting at the International Date Line and going west, or view all drinks at a glance.

Water

Start off slowly with a glass of water and a geography lesson: Kiribati is just to the west of the International Date Line.

Note for hair-splitters: There are actually more than 24 time zones, and at the two extremes of the Earth there is a 26-hour time difference. To simplify, we’ve left out the half-hour time zone increments and kept it to 26 hours. Plus, some people (primarily followers of the Orthodox Church) observe the Julian calendar, on which the New Year falls a week or two later.