I recently attended an out of state wedding where the
ceremony took place outdoors on a crisp October afternoon at the foliage’s full
peak. As we entered the yard we
were offered a choice of a hot-spiced apple cider or hot-spiced red wine, in
these giant metal mugs, to take the chill off while we waited for all the
guests to arrive and for the ceremony to begin. It was such a simple touch, but the gesture showed that the
bride and groom were really thinking about the comfort and enjoyment of their friends
and family and I can’t seem to stop thinking about how gorgeous that afternoon
was. I can only imagine that if I
was sitting there shivering in my black tie gown that my memories of that same
afternoon wouldn’t be so warm and fuzzy, so to speak…. At least certainly not
warm!
In my last post, I mentioned how guests went crazy for our
homemade, non-alcoholic, picnic style ginger ale & iced-teas and that got
me thinking about what other specialty drinks we could re-invent to liven up
the holiday party season. There
are SO many recipes out there that it hardly feels like there’s an original
drink left to invent, but if you’re having a smallish get-together and have a
stash of ingredients and some basic bar equipment on hand, I think it’s fun to
experiment and fill each glass to the tippler’s tastes. Or, you can blend up a pitcher at a
time for a group, compare notes and change up each batch as the comments roll
in.
To start, red wine or port, brandy, whiskey, rum and gin are
easy to work with for a winter specialty drink because they already have a
heavy spiciness that will complement the extra ingredients rather than compete
like Tequila. Next, triple sec and
Amaretto add a kick more alcohol and wintery flavors to that base, or you could
go less potent with just apple, pear, blood orange, lemon or pomegranate flesh
or all-natural juice instead.
Finally, unexpected and fun ingredients like star anise, cinnamon
sticks, maple syrup, cayenne pepper, ginger root, nutmeg and cloves make the
statement that some real thought went into the preparation of this drink and
can turn your cocktails into an experience to remember.
Here’s an example of a cocktail I’m planning to serve at a
party I’m having soon… with pears in season and spiciness on the brain, I’m
hoping my guests will agree it’s a good one.
To make one serving:
2-3 thin slices of fresh ginger root
5 thin slices fresh pear
Organic sugar
1 ½ oz Gin or Vodka
¾ oz Triple sec (Cointreau or Grand Marnier)
¾ oz Freshly squeezed lemon juice
Dash of ground Allspice
Muddle the ginger and pear with the sugar in a bar
shaker. Add 1 ½ oz gin or vodka, 1
oz of triple sec, lemon juice and all spice. Cover and shake briefly to blend ingredients. Pour mixture, unstrained, over ice in a
rocks glass. Garnish with a slice
of pear (optional).
