’Tis the Season for Cups of Cheer
The December holidays are all about gathering with friends and family sharing meals, exchanging gifts and reveling in the magic of the season. Here are a few recipes to bring good cheer.
Coquito
(Yields 4 quarts)
1 ½ cups Ron Del
Barrilito rum
1 cup Planteray
coconut rum
2 cups Spiced syrup*
1 can (12 oz.)
Evaporated milk
1 can (14 oz.) Sweetened condensed milk
4 cans (13.5 oz. each) Coconut milk
1 can (15 oz.) Coco Lopez coconut cream
Add all ingredients to immersion blender, and blend until smooth and well combined. Add to airtight bottle and store in refrigerator. When ready to serve, pour 2 oz. of Coquito into a sherry wine glass or coupe glass. Garnish with star anise, grated nutmeg and cinnamon stick.
*For Spiced syrup:
1 quart Water
6 Cinnamon sticks
5 Star anise
1 tbsp. Allspice, whole
2 tsps. Spiced
cloves, whole
1 quart Granulated sugar
Place water and spices in a 2-quart saucepan. Bring to a boil and cook for 2minutes. Remove from heat, let sit for 1 hour (minimum), then strain. In a new saucepot, create syrup by combining the spiced tea with the granulated sugar over low heat. Once dissolved and fully combined. Let sit off heat until cool
before use.
Chef Yun Fuentes at Bolo in Philadelphia created this recipe.
Sleigh Ride
1 ¾ oz. Grey
Goose vodka
½ oz. Italicus
bergamot liqueur
¾ oz. Lime juice
1 oz. Cheeky
cranberry syrup
1 oz. Soda water
Combine all ingredients except the soda water into a shaker with ice. Shake for 3 seconds and strain into a highball glass with fresh ice and 2 light-up ice cubes. Top with soda water and stir once. Garnish with 3 cranberries and a sprig of fresh rosemary.
Mixologist Julie Reiner created this recipe for the pop-up Blitzen’s Bar at Omni Hotels & Resorts
Holiday Sonata
1 oz. Teremana Blanco tequila
½ oz. Apple juice
½ oz. Cranberry juice
½ oz. Allspice-infused Demerara rich
syrup (2:1)*
¼ oz. Orange liqueur
2-3 oz. Champagne
Combine all ingredients except Champagne in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a coupe glass and top with 2 oz. of Champagne. Garnish with a Demerara sugar rim and twist of orange zest.
*For Allspice-infused Demerara syrup:
Add ½ tsp. of ground allspice to a saucepan for every 3 cups of Demerara rich syrup. Simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes, and rest for 5 minutes. Strain mixture through a cheesecloth to remove excess.
The mixologists at Teremana created this recipe.
Naughty Nog
1 oz. Hennessy VS
Cognac
1 oz. Rumchata liqueur (can be regular, coconut or peppermint bark flavor)
1 oz. Eggnog, enhanced with vanilla, cinnamon and star anise if desired
½ oz. Cinnamon agave*
3 dashes Chocolate bitters
Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add Cognac, Rumchata, eggnog, cinnamon agave and chocolate bitters. Shake until well chilled, then strain into a cocktail glass. Garnish with a pinch of Maldon salt and a festive feature.
*For Cinnamon agave:
Combine 1 part hot water, 2 parts agave in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring until blended. Add 5 cinnamon sticks, reduce to low heat, and simmer for 15 minutes. Once fragrant, remove from heat, strain and cool.
The mixologists at Maple & Ash created this recipe.
Modern Glam
1 oz. Honey syrup (1:1)
1 ½ oz. Pomegranate juice
1 oz. Monkey 47 gin
3 oz. Prosecco
Rim a flute glass with pomegranate sugar. Add all ingredients to a cocktail tin excluding prosecco, shake and strain into flute glass. Top with prosecco and garnish with an orange peel ribbon.
The mixologists at Caspian’s Cocktails & Caviar in Las Vegas created this recipe.
Oy to the World
½ oz. Ilegal mezcal
1 ½ oz. Patron silver tequila
¾ oz. Lime juice
1 oz. Cheeky hot honey/apricot syrup
Combine all ingredients into a shaker with ice. Shake for 7-10 seconds. Fine strain into a rocks glass with fresh ice and garnish with a gelt chocolate coin bag.
Mixologist Julie Reiner created this recipe for the pop-up Blitzen’s Bar at Omni Hotels & Resorts.
Christmas Piano--(Photo Credit: Quaker City Mercantile)
Non-alcoholic
1 ½ oz. The Pathfinder Hemp and Root (nonalcoholic hemp-based botanical spirit)
2 droppers All the Bitter Aromatic nonalcoholic bitters
½ oz. Orange winter spice maple syrup
1 oz. Lyres Dark Cane nonalcoholic rum
Add ingredients to a Julep cup. Muddle in 7 mint leaves. Stir, and add crushed ice. Garnish with a candy cane.
Kraig Rovensky, The Pathfinder Global Brand Ambassador, created this recipe.
Cherry & Chocolate Boulivardier
1 ½ oz. Dewar’s 12 Year Old Scotch Whisky
¾ oz. Martini & Rossi Rubino
¾ oz. Martini & Rossi Bitter
1 oz. Cherry juice
2 dashes Chocolate bitters
Add all ingredients to mixing glass and stir with ice until chilled. Add melted chocolate to base of glass and add cherry and mint as garnish.
The mixologists at Dewar’s created this recipe.