“Why did we ever stop drinking these?” Miranda asks Carrie as she, Samantha, and Charlotte take sips of their signature Cosmopolitans in the final scene of the Sex and the City movie. The answer is a classic Carrie Bradshaw quip: “Because everyone else started.”

Everyone, in this case, were the millions who packed theaters in 2008 in order to spend a little more time with the girls. The series had ended four years prior and we were all eager to revisit our favorite foursome. And the movie, in that specific regard, didn't disappoint. Alongside new plot points and trends, we were served Carrie’s familiar oversized flower dress, the iconic pink tutu, and a cameo from the Galliano newsprint dress. The first movie marked a shift in how we watch Sex and the City: it was no longer just about the women’s stories, it was also about us, the audience, and calling on our memory of having spent six years with them from 1998 to 2004. Our lens was suddenly just as important as the original camera's.

And that final line in the movie about Cosmos was a loving nod to us.

Of all the emblems of Sex and the City – Manolos, Louis Vuitton, Upper East Side penthouses – the Cosmo was the most attainable. We couldn't afford designer shoes, but we could enjoy the same drink as Carrie and crew. It helped that the Cosmopolitan’s sweet taste and bright pink visuals matched the cotton-candy aesthetic and wish fulfillment that kept us watching. Served in martini glass with a lime garnish, it even somehow resembled our favorite sex columnist. For a generation of viewers, adulthood looked like ordering a Cosmo with friends and commiserating about dates gone awry.