Memorial Day 2026 Thursday Last-Call: The 4-Bottle Cookout Kit + 2-Day Shipping Math (Order Before 2 PM ET)
Today is Thursday, May 21 — the absolute last day for standard ground shipping to land before Memorial Day weekend. UPS does not run on Memorial Day (Monday, May 25), and packages that leave a warehouse on Friday typically don't arrive until Tuesday, May 26 — well after the cookout is over. If you're reading this in the afternoon and you haven't ordered anything yet, the calculus is simple: choose the smallest, leanest kit that can still throw a real party, click UPS 2-Day, and be done.
This is the leanest possible Memorial Day list. Four bottles, four categories (sparkling, gin, bourbon, spritz aperitivo), all in stock as of this morning. Total damage: roughly $122 before shipping, which is about half what most "Memorial Day liquor haul" guides recommend. It serves 8 to 10 people comfortably for a 3 to 4 hour cookout — and the entire kit doubles as a Aperol Spritz bar setup, a gin-and-tonic station, or a sipping-bourbon corner depending on which way the afternoon drifts.
If you ordered yesterday following our Last Day to Order for Memorial Day 2026 panic guide, you're already set — close this tab and go enjoy your Thursday. This post is for the procrastinators.
The 2-day shipping math (read this first)
Here's what's true about UPS and Memorial Day weekend 2026, in plain numbers:
- UPS Ground out today (Thursday 5/21): Most metro zones deliver Friday 5/22 or Saturday 5/23. Some longer zones slip to Tuesday 5/26.
- UPS Ground out tomorrow (Friday 5/22): Saturday delivery is unlikely for most addresses. Expect Tuesday 5/26.
- UPS 2-Day Air out today: Guaranteed Saturday 5/23 for almost every U.S. zone. Costs roughly $18 to $32 on a 6-pound shipper depending on distance — the price of one extra bottle. For most procrastinators, that math is worth it.
- UPS Next Day out Friday 5/22: Saturday delivery possible but expensive ($35 to $55) and not all zip codes are guaranteed. Use only as a last resort.
The takeaway: if you order before 2 p.m. ET today with 2-Day Air, you will have liquor on your porch Saturday morning. If you wait until tomorrow with ground, you probably will not.
The four-bottle kit ($122.16 / serves 8–10)
1. La Marca Prosecco ($17.99) — the do-anything bubbly
La Marca is the workhorse of American Prosecco shelves for one reason: it is reliably fresh, crisp, well-balanced, and disappears at $18. For Memorial Day weekend it does triple duty: drink it solo with cheese plates, top it up with Aperol for spritzes, or build mimosas for Sunday brunch. With inventory at 48 bottles this morning, this is the most shippable bottle in the entire wine catalog right now.
Pro tip: chill it down to 38°F for at least 90 minutes before serving. Warm Prosecco is sad Prosecco.
2. Bombay Gin ($27.09) — the gin-and-tonic engine
Memorial Day is the unofficial start of gin-and-tonic season. Bombay Original (the 86-proof bottle, not Sapphire) is a classic London Dry: juniper-forward, dry, with enough citrus and coriander to play well with tonic water and a lime wheel. At $27.09 it is one of the best-value gins in our gin collection, and inventory is at 6 bottles. Pair it with a quality tonic — Fever-Tree if you can grab it locally — and you have a 15-second cocktail anyone in the kitchen can build.
3. Wild Turkey Longbranch ($39.99) — the porch-pour bourbon
Longbranch is the Matthew McConaughey collaboration with Eddie Russell at Wild Turkey: an 8-year Kentucky straight bourbon refined with Texas mesquite and oak charcoal. The smoky note is subtle (think hint of campfire, not a peated Scotch) and it makes Longbranch a fantastic neat pour at sunset — exactly the bourbon moment that tends to happen at a Memorial Day cookout when the burgers come off the grill. $39.99, 6 in stock. For more bourbon options at this price point see our full bourbon collection.
4. Aperol Aperitivo 1L ($37.09) — the spritz factory
One liter of Aperol makes 11 to 13 standard Aperol Spritzes (3 oz Prosecco + 2 oz Aperol + splash of soda). Combined with the La Marca bottle above, you have a built-in spritz bar for the entire weekend without buying any other ingredients. The 1L size at $37.09 is a better value than the 750ml ($33.99) and lasts through a 10-person cookout with room to spare. Aperol lives in our Cordials & Liqueurs collection — worth browsing if you want to expand the spritz program with Campari, Lillet, or St-Germain (see today's Aperol Spritz & Low-ABV Bar Guide, publishing later this morning).
The cookout math: what 4 bottles actually pour
For a 10-person, 3-hour cookout the rule of thumb is roughly 1.5 to 2 drinks per person, or 15 to 20 pours total. Here's how this kit delivers:
- Prosecco (La Marca 750ml): 5 to 6 four-ounce pours solo, OR 4 to 5 spritzes.
- Aperol Spritz (using both Aperol 1L and Prosecco): Up to 13 spritzes if you put both bottles into spritz duty.
- Gin & Tonic (Bombay 750ml): 16 standard pours (1.5 oz gin each).
- Bourbon (Longbranch 750ml): 16 standard pours (1.5 oz neat or on a rock).
Total: comfortably 30+ drink units in the kit — more than enough for 10 people across an afternoon, with leftovers for the next weekend.
If you have an extra $20 (the deluxe upgrade)
If you're feeling generous and have $20 to spare, the highest-leverage add is a bottle of Lillet Aperitif White ($22.99). Lillet Blanc is a fortified-wine aperitif that turns the same Prosecco + gin kit into Lillet Spritzes (2 oz Lillet + 3 oz Prosecco + splash of soda + cucumber slice) — a lower-ABV, slightly more elegant spritz that tends to win over guests who find Aperol too bitter or too sweet. It also plays well with the Bombay Gin in a Vesper-style martini riff.
For broader gift ideas at this price tier, our Memorial Day Premium Bourbon Gift Guide and Wine & Rosé Pairing Guide cover the next price tier up.
What to do right now (3-step checklist)
- Add the four bottles to your cart (La Marca Prosecco, Bombay Gin, Wild Turkey Longbranch, Aperol 1L). Total before shipping and tax: $122.16.
- At checkout, choose UPS 2-Day Air. Yes, it's an extra $20 to $30. Yes, it's worth it on Memorial Day Thursday.
- Place the order before 2 p.m. ET today (Thursday 5/21). After 2 p.m. ET the cutoff for Friday handoff to UPS gets tight, even on 2-Day Air.
That's it. You'll have everything Saturday morning, have time to chill the Prosecco, and be in the spritz game by noon Sunday. If you also want to expand into batched cocktails for the cookout itself, the Old Fashioned Batch Guide and the Frozen Margarita & Paloma Batch Guide are both no-equipment-required and scale to 10+ people.
Shop the kit
All four bottles ship from our warehouse to most U.S. states; check the cart for state-by-state availability. Browse the underlying categories: Wine, Gin, Bourbon, and Cordials & Liqueurs. Or jump straight to Best Sellers if you want the universally-shippable shortlist.
