This Is The Only Time Ron Has Been Drunk On Parks And Recreation

Ron Swanson. Few names evoke such immediate feelings of rugged manliness than that of Nick Offerman's beloved, curmudgeonly, anti-government bureaucrat character from Parks and Recreation. With these three short syllables, we conjure images of woodworking, Libertarianism, and impeccably groomed mustaches. Oh, and let's not forget whisky; lots of whisky. But not just any whisky will do for the alter ego of jazz legend Duke Silver; Ron Swanson is partial to the "nectar of the gods," Lagavulin single malt scotch, so much so that Leslie Knope (Amy Poelher) sends Ron on a surprise trip to the Islay distillery in Parks & Rec season 6 when the gang is in London. Of course, fans of Ron Swanson and-or Lagavulin know that Offerman himself enjoys the dram in real life and even partnered with the distillery for the brand's 11-year-old Offerman edition, as People reported in 2019. 

But, with as much whisky as Ron Swanson drinks on-screen in Parks & Rec, don't expect to see him drunk too often. After all, he comes from a long line of drinkers, not the least of whom is his father: "My old man used to put Wild Turkey on his corn flakes." Of course, his mother is no slouch either; when Tammy One (Patricia Clarkson) has Ron back in her clutches, his mother, Tammy Zero (Paula Pell) shows up to reclaim her son with an old-fashioned prairie drink-off — featuring a jug of Swanson family mash liquor — a spectacle to which Ron puts an end by chugging the remains of the potent potable himself in order to save Leslie. In fact, there's only one time in recorded history we can remember Ron Swanson being drunk on Parks and Recreation.

Ron Swanson got drunk when everyone got drunk. Remember in season 3 of Parks and Recreation when Leslie and Ann (Rashida Jones) have their first real fight, in an episode aptly entitled "The Fight"? Well if you were a character on the show, your answer to that question could very well be "no," because you may have been among the unlucky Pawnee citizens to imbibe Snake Juice, Tom Haverford's (Aziz Ansari) new highly intoxicating alcoholic beverage at his night club, the Snakehole Lounge. What's in Snake Juice that it could get people so wasted? We're not sure, but Donna Meagle (Retta) — who did not partake because she's on a juice cleanse — sure has a theory. "This Snake Juice is basically rat poison. Everybody's wasted!"

And boy was she right. Shortly after Donna's keen observation, viewers were treated to a montage of the show's inebriated characters ranting, raving, and mumbling incoherently. The only one who didn't even bother to attempt vocalizing was Ron, who we instead see dancing exuberantly to Flo Rida's "Who Dat Girl," wearing what appeared to be April Ludgate's (Aubrey Plaza) fascinator hat from her Janet Snakehole persona. It sure is a good thing Donna didn't partake so she was able to drive everyone home, if Snake Juice was so potent that even the mighty Ron Swanson got hammered — hardware pun intended.

The next day, everyone is hungover, as expected. Everyone except Ron, of course, because he's never been hungover. Perhaps after his Snake Juice bender, he partook of his traditional hangover prevention method, which he once revealed when filling in for Joan Callamezzo (Mo Collins) on Pawnee Today. "After I've had too much whiskey, I cook myself a large flank steak, pan-fried in salted butter. I eat that, put on a pair of wet socks and go to sleep."