The Gilded Horseshoe sits in a very small village far from any major settlements, but it serves a vast area, as this is the establishment of choice for the ranchers on the plains surrounding Longsaddle. That clientele guarantees a lot of rowdy nights on the sawdust-scattered floorboards of this converted barn, but the nearby presence of the powerful Harpell family ensures nothing too destructive ever happens—unless the Harpells are the ones causing trouble. Travelers on the Long Road will find a warm welcome, a sense of safety, and a boot-scootin' night to remember at the Horseshoe, so long as they stay on the right side of the Harpells!
Whiskey made from local Dessarin Valley grain is the drink of choice for locals at the Horseshoe. Usually that means a shot with a beer, but the inn also serves fine whiskey cocktails for fancy merchants, guests of the Harpells, and ranchers with refined tastes!
Hand of Vecna
Vecna is a powerful archlich known to some as the Undying King, the Whispered One, and the Master of the Spider Throne. Vecna studied the dark arts from childhood at the knee (or under the boot heel) of his cruel hedge witch mother. Unshackled from the bounds of time and space, Vecna's terrible touch may be as inevitable as death itself.
The archlich's withered hand, also unstuck from time, is a legendarily powerful artifact that grants its bearer terrible necromantic abilities at the cost of the bearer's own hand and eventually at the cost of their life.
While awaiting the inevitable end of all things in Vecna's wrinkled gray clutches, one might as well enjoy this deliciously smoky and potentially sacrilegious cocktail, created either in tribute to a dastardly figure or as a rebuke to a sinister bogeyman.
Nether Gold
For three thousand years, the Netheril Empire dominated Faerûn from wondrous citadels floating high above the land. Such was the power of the Empire that it seemed indestructible, and that—of course—was its undoing. Karsus, the greatest of the city's spellcasters, was so drunk on power that he tried to place himself among the gods themselves. He was cast down for his pride as was the Empire.
The vast deserts of Anauroch beyond Evereska are the graveyard of Netheril. Treasure hunters often venture out to seek their fortune, hoping to find gold, jewels, or long-lost magic artifacts. Beyond the environmental challenges of the desert and the rivalry of other hunters in a lawless land, they face a high likelihood of death thanks to Netherese creatures, traps, and ancient spells scattered across the sands. The Gilded Horseshoe is the last stop before the desert for many of these hunters. This golden cocktail with honey is often their last drink before they depart, and perhaps their last drink ever.
Ogretoe
The ogre Orgo Beardlichen stumbled into the Horseshoe one evening, claiming to have been caught in a freak snowstorm on an otherwise bright, sunny day. The staff warmed him up but could not save the big toe on his left foot, which had already turned black. Orgo took an axe off the wall, chopped off the toe, and plopped it in a cask of whiskey. He said he would find a healer who could reattach it. There had been no freak snowstorm, however. Orgo had merely offended a frost druid, and she wasn't done taking her revenge on him. The druid entered the bar and killed Orgo on the spot. The toe in the whiskey was the only part of him left behind.
Drinking the ogre toe whiskey became a strange tradition at the Horseshoe. People dared each other to drink a shot of contaminated whiskey with the toe bobbing in the glass, and anyone who "kissed" the toe was inducted into "the Ogretoe Society." Unfortunately, the adventurer Volothamp Geddarm swallowed the toe, and now the bar serves a drink that approximates the original with a pickle in place of the toe and pickle juice to give it that ogre-ish flavor.
Pegasus
Many remarkable creatures are found in the Ivy Mansion, the ancestral home of the Harpells, a powerful wizard family. Rumor has it that those animals don't roam freely; they've been shrunken down and placed in glass jars as part of the family's collection of magic experiments and wonders. There may be a Pegasus or two in the collection, but the Harpells don't like to see these magic winged horses fall into rival hands. When a group of vicious hunters came to the Moonwood to hunt for Pegasuses, the Harpells called on the legendary orcish druid Dawan Pax, also known as "the Hunter's Curse," to stop them.
Pax made short work of the Moonwood hunters and brought the injured Pegasuses to Ivy Mansion to establish a sanctuary. Pax also left behind a flask of invigorating fruit tonic that became the basis for a cocktail to raise funds for the care of the creatures. The Harpells thanked him and hurried him away before he could learn of the glass jars in their barn.
Cat's Cradle
Any bar or tavern that plays host to occasional tabaxi travelers would be advised to have some version of this milk punch on their menu. Tabaxi are a catlike people who share a curiosity about the world that inspires them to travel far and wide. Most wandering tabaxi are also adept hunters, so while they may enjoy a steaming cup of gristly brown tavern stew, they don't necessarily need to part with coin to get fed. They don't even pay for a room, as they'd rather sleep curled in a sunbeam by the window or in front of a roaring fire. This is very frustrating for innkeepers, who don't like to see any traveler pass by without some payment. That's where milk punch comes in. There is something nostalgic about milk. It ensures sweet dreams for a tabaxi far from home. Spiking that milk with a little whiskey, well, perhaps that makes those dreams come a little quicker!
Harpell's Reserve
All members of the Harpell family are welcome at the Gilded Horseshoe, and their drinks are always free—because all landlords of the Gilded Horseshoe know what happened to former owner Edgourd Mellish generations ago when he asked Lord Morgus Harpell to cover his bar tab. Edgourd now stands in the Harpells' statue garden, wreathed in ivy.
To keep the Harpells happy, there's always a special blend of the Harpell's Reserve in a cask behind the bar. The blend is aged in sacred oak from the Neverwinter Wood, and no one else is allowed to drink it. One fool attempted to jump the bar to sample it and exploded into a cloud of bugs. Another was served the Reserve by mistake and reverted to infancy. An entire group of raiders attempted to rob the bar and almost got away with their heist, but one idiot tried to drink from the barrel and the whole group melted on the spot.
We suggest you attempt this recipe at your own risk.
Loklee
On the occasion of the Grand Duke of Baldur's Gate, Ulder Ravengard's, civic visit to Longsaddle, the Lord of Longsaddle, Dowell Harpell, instructed one of the bartenders at the Gilded Horseshoe to make a cocktail in his honor.
The bartender, a githyanki named L'rai, was born in Baldur's Gate and knew of the city's darkness, sophistication, and complexity very well. She created a cocktail inspired by her memories of a sour-edged and very strong bathtub whiskey rumored to have been made and enjoyed by shepherds since the time when Baldur's Gate was still the humble village known as Loklee. Unfortunately, Lord Ravengard never bothered to visit the tavern during his stay to try L'rai's adaptation. The Gilded Horseshoe still serves the Loklee cocktail in case he ever stops by.
Dragonberries
The warlock Zanizyre Clockguard has a fearsome reputation because of her bond to her patron DMG, the terrible Queen of Dragons. When Zanizyre passed through Longsaddle, even the Harpells were a little nervous, despite the fact that she is really one of the nicest gnomes you'll ever meet.
Zanizyre came to the Gilded Horseshoe with three hungry hatchling dragons that she had rescued from an Auranoch cyclops. The kitchen was closed and the larders were nearly empty, but the staff were determined not to anger DMG. They found some barrels of chickpeas, added a few spices, and asked Zanizyre to provide the fire to roast them into a delicious crunchy snack. The baby dragons loved the snack, as did Zanizyre herself. She left a generous tip and told the bar staff that DMG might spare them on her inevitable return to this world if they kept the dragonberries on the menu.