We’re in the middle of true winter when we could use a cozy cocktail to warm our insides. Winter is all about being cozy…I find myself searching for warmth from a fire and a ski sweater but a cocktail may be the best way to help ease the midwinter chill. You can sip on a glass of wine any time, but there’s something particularly pleasurable about a cocktail designed for the colder months.
Hot Toddies and Gloggs have been served for centuries because they warm the body and soothe the soul. My favorite winter cocktails are those that remind me of a great day on the slopes. What better way to end the day than looking at the mountains and watching snowstorm with a steaming Hot Toddy? Another thought would be to start a new tradition of an avant ski drink before it’s time for après with an Irish Coffee…spoon a mountain of freshly whipped cream and zip, zoom, kapow!
Finally there was the great glacier run, smooth and straight, forever straight if your legs could hold it, your ankles locked, you running so low, leaning into the speed, dropping forever and forever in the silent hiss of the crisp powder. It was better than any flying or anything else, and you built the ability to do it and to have it with the long climbs, carrying the heavy rucksacks. You could not buy it nor take a ticket to the top. It was the end we worked all winter for, and all the winter built to make it possible. ~Ernest Hemingway
These are five winter cocktails that should do the trick…Hemingway would certainly approve of your après ski cocktail!
Irish Coffee:
- 1.25 ounce Irish whiskey
- 4 ounces hot, but not scalded coffee
- 5/8 ounce Rich Demerara syrup (combine two parts demerara sugar to one part water and cook until the sugar dissolves; keep until needed)
- 1 ounce heavy cream, softly whipped
Add the Irish whiskey to a tall, heat-tolerant glass, preferably an Irish Coffee glass. Combine the coffee and 5/8 oz. Demerara syrup separately from the whiskey, then add it to the glass with the whiskey and stir gently. Float the whipped cream over the top and grate a bit of nutmeg over the whipped cream.
Glogg:
- 1 bottle dry red wine
- 1 & 1/4 cups brandy
- 12 whole cloves
- 6 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
- 2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 4 orange zest strips
- 1/2 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup blanched almonds
In saucepan over medium heat, combine the wine, brandy, cloves, cardamom pods, and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a simmer and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir in the sugar and orange zest. Divide the raisins and almonds among 4 warmed cups or goblets. Pour in the spiced wine through a sieve and serve.
Moscow Mule:
- 1 part vodka
- 2 parts ginger beer
- Lime wedge for garnish
Fill a glass with ice, crushed or cubed.
Fill the glass 1/3 full with vodka.
Top with ginger beer and squeeze in some lime.
Cherry Lime Hot Toddy:
- a few dried cherries
- lime zest strip
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 ounces whiskey
- 6 ounces boiling water
In a mug, combine the lime zest, dried cherries, and sugar. Add the whiskey. Pour in the boiling water, and stir until the sugar is fully dissolved. Sip and enjoy!
Hot Buttered Rum:
- 1 ounce dark rum
- 3 whole cloves
- 1 1/2 teaspoon dark brown sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 Pad of salted butter
- 3 cups boiled water
Place the cloves, rum, and sugar in cup and gently mix; after mixing, place cinnamon stick in concoction.
Smear butter inside the cup, just above the rum.
Pour the boiled water slowly over the butter and allow it to melt. Cinnamon stick stays in the cup.
Forget the fire and warm yourself up with one of these hot drinks…extra-boozy concoctions guaranteed to keep you warm.
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