Tales From The Cellar

Cocktail Corner: Winter Warmers Part II

Well if you’re reading these lines that must mean that you found my last entry intriguing enough to come back and try some new cocktails to soothe the head and make your insides all cozy. Without further adieu, here’s the second installment, ready for your drinking pleasure.

Rum-laced Cider

• 1 ½ oz Coruba Dark Rum ($14.99)
• 1 ½ oz Sailor Jerry’s Spiced Navy Rum ($16.99)
• Hot apple cider

Pour your rums into a Brandy snifter and top with cider, then float a pat of butter on top and dust with cinnamon and/or nutmeg. There’s a pleasant continuum in this cocktail with the deep molasses flavors of the Dark Rum flowing into the Spiced Rum transitioning finally into the spiced notes of the apple cider. The butter on top ties everything together and makes the drink completely rich. Imbibe this one and melt away.

Hot Chocolate Stinger

• ¾ oz Park VS Cognac ($29.99)
• ¾ oz Tempus Fugit Crème de Menthe Blanc ($33.99)
• 4 oz hot cocoa

Stir together the Cognac and Crème de Menthe into a large coffee mug and then pour in your hot cocoa. Top with whipped cream and dust with cocoa powder. Best. Hot. Chocolate. Ever.

Brotherly Love

• 1 ½ oz Damrak Amsterdam Gin ($19.89)
• ¾ oz Licor 43 Cuarenta y Tres ($22.99)
• ¾ oz simple syrup
• 4 oz steamed milk
• Garnish with fresh ground nutmeg

Whoa! Whoa! Calm down there, friend. I know why you’re recoiling in abject terror. You don’t even want to think about this combo of ingredients, do you? You’re afraid that simply looking at the above list will haunt your dreams for nights to come, but hear me out. Milk used to be a totally commonplace ingredient in many a vintage cocktail. Take Rum Milk Punch, for instance. But I still understand that the idea of combining milk with Gin of all things could seem like a challenge to your very moral fiber. But give this a chance. It’s tasty, I promise. Pour the Gin, Liqueur, and simple syrup into a toddy glass or mug and stir. Steam your milk (this doesn’t require a home espresso machine; you can heat up the milk in a saucepan on medium high while whisking), add milk to the toddy mixture, and make sure to give the whole concoction a quick stir once everything’s together in the glass. Finally, grate some nutmeg on top. Aromatically, you get swept up in scents of sweet cream, flowers, and spice. On the palate, the creaminess gives way to nuttiness, some citrus, and a surprisingly docile juniper note. The steamed milk carries everything on a frothy, cloudy texture. This beverage is sweet yet sophisticated, and it drinks like a foamy latte from another planet.

Canadian Rye Punch

• 1 bottle Hirsch Selection 3 Year Canadian Rye Whisky ($24.99)
• Lemon peel from 4 lemons (as little pith as possible)
• ¾ cup Demerara sugar
• 1 quart boiling water

Remove the peel from the four lemons. Use a vegetable peeler or similar device in order to get as little of the pith as possible (lemon juice would make the punch too sour, getting too much pith will turn things rather bitter, but the fresh and zesty peel will be just right). Use 1 cup of your boiling water to rinse out a large earthenware jug, bowl, or carafe, which will simultaneously clean and warm up the vessel. Dump out the water then put your sugar and the lemon peel into the container and then add another cup of the boiling water, stirring until the sugar is pretty much dissolved. Pour in the bottle of Hirsch Canadian Rye and finally add the rest of the boiling water and stir. Serve your Whisky punch in mugs or small wine glasses and grate a little fresh nutmeg (or other winter-friendly spice) over the top.

There you have it. These ought to last you until February or March or whenever it starts to warm up around here. That’s when you can turn your attentions back to Mai Tai’s, Margaritas, and summery drinks that have tiny, colorful umbrellas floating in them. Until then, stay thirsty and stay warm!

Neal F., Beltramo’s Spirits Staff