Well, it’s somehow already December. December is the month of holiday celebrations designed to be cloyingly sweet and annoyingly happy in an effort to keep us all from losing our minds in the endless cold and dark… or at least that’s the way I see it. It’s also a month of seeing family members that you might not typically see the rest of the calendar year, which means many people reach for their favorite holiday libations to keep themselves from entering another political argument with aunt Stacy. Luckily for me, my family’s love language is yelling so it’s not much different from the rest of our gatherings. (This isn’t my “blink twice” call for help, my maternal side is truly just naturally loud 😅)
It definitely feels like December out here in Mass; We are currently sitting at 5 degrees Fahrenheit! So to warm you up I thought I’d kick off December with some cocktail inspiration and some of the most interesting budget buys from the “best of” lists that are going around.
Some Interesting New Releases
The First Wave of Gift Guides Are Out and We’re Working on Ours
Since my list isn’t quite ready to be released for this years best gifts by category, I thought I’d add some interesting new releases that I’ve caught in my scrolling.
Chinola Passion Fruit - As you’ll see in the next segment, my family has passionfruit juice on hand always. My daughter calls it “lellow juice” and it is a crisis if we somehow ever run out. This passionfruit liqueur is from the Dominican Republic and was awarded Double Gold in the 2024 San Francisco Competition. For only about $33 this sounds like the perfect bottle for someone who likes to experiment with cocktail recipes.
Kota Pandan Liqueur - After reading this description I am actively shopping for this bottle. Its only about $35 for a bottle and according to vinepair: “The aroma is overwhelmingly vanilla but there’s a certain grassy-like quality as well. On the palate, it’s unmistakably cereal milk, Fruity Pebbles perhaps, with an underlying nuttiness. While fun to drink on its own, this one soars in cocktails.”
Farmer's Botanical Small Batch Organic Gin - I am not always into gin but I am always a big herb nerd. Most notably this gin has hemp seed that gives it a distinctive “nutty” flavor and isn’t the most aggressively juniper-forward. With lemongrass included as well this gin seems to be calling out to me personally.
Classic Holiday Cocktails That Will Actually Impress Your Guests
And That Don’t Require 17 Ingredients and 3 Business Days to Execute
This week I am going to give you three classic, easy to make cocktails that will still impress your guests. My bestie Lindsay challenged me to do a cocktail everyday for the “12 days of Christmas” and I’m actually feeling up to it this year, so after this week’s newsletter I will be starting a journey to make a cocktail everyday leading up to Christmas. Those ones will include some more exotic and unique drinks than what I’m including this week. I’ll include a recap in our newsletter but for anyone interested in following along on Instagram or TikTok I will link them down below. I am using parts for most recipes so you can scale them how you like but work as large batches or individual servings.
Wassail:
This is a traditional Old English or Anglo-Saxon beverage and can be served with a wide variety of base spirits. On record it was made with brandy, rum, whiskey, mead and even ale. The name comes from the Anglo-Saxon phrase “waes hael” which means “be whole” or “to your health”. I’m blending a few recipes that I’ve sampled to give you what I think is a more balanced version. Most recipes you will see online tell you to simmer this on the stove top and serve which you can absolutely do, but for a large gathering I generally prefer to simmer it ahead and then keep it warm in a crockpot to serve. Try this instead of your typical mulled cider this year.
4 parts Apple Cider
1 part Orange Juice - For me, mulled cider tends to be on the sweet side so the addition of orange juice makes this more palatable to me.
.5 part Cranberry Juice - Again, helps to cut the sweetness.
Spices: 2-6 Cinnamon Sticks, 10-15 whole cloves (or about .5 tsp ground), a small to medium sized notch of fresh ginger (or .25 tsp dried ground), .25 tsp freshly ground/regular ground nutmeg, 2-3 star anise pods - All of these are by preference and might require some trial and error to suit your own palate.
Optional: splash of lemon juice, scoop of brown sugar - if you want to add brown sugar, a heaping spoonful would be enough for that slight molasses touch. If you choose to add brown sugar you may also want to add some fresh lemon juice to balance out the extra sweetness.
Holiday Red Sangria:
This is actually one of my personal recipes. I make sangria by the glass for my family often enough that I decided to play around with my ingredients to make something a little more interesting. When I make a quick sangria by the glass I typically use 1.5 ounces of brandy (or an aged rum), .5 ounces of dry Curaçao (or triple sec), 4-6 ounces of red wine depending on the size of the glass, and then top up with the juice of choice, which in our case is usually passionfruit. For this one I wanted something that wasn’t over-done. Winter baking spice is a great addition to drinks to make them feel warm and seasonal but it also feels like the PSL of holiday drinks sometimes. I went a bit more neutral with this one so it can carry through any season but feels cozy enough for a holiday sip.
1.5 parts Brandy, Aged Rum or Bourbon of your choice - I like Four Roses as a budget-friendly but good quality staple for this iteration.
1 part Amaro - I used Amaro Nonino which is on the lighter side, for more robust flavor Montenegro is another staple I love, but play around with your favorite.
.25 part Dry Curaçao - I always have Pierre Ferrand on hand at home but in a pinch regular triple sec is fine just a touch sweeter so taste and adjust if needed.
4-6 parts Red Wine - I prefer to use a budget red blend with good body for sangrias since I’m mixing them, but a good general rule is to use a red with a little more backbone like cabernet sauvignon as opposed to a typically lighter red like pinot noir.
Top with Juice - My best one yet was with a cran-elderberry juice but other great combos would be apple cider, cran-raspberry, and even my ol’ reliable passionfruit juice.
Holiday Punch:
Hopefully my mom doesn’t kill me for sharing this family recipe… just kidding, I’m pretty sure that most families have a version of this punch around the New Year. This is one that I like to make in a punch bowl sans-spirits and leave guests to add their favorite, but you can make it with the booze included depending on your audience. I did say at the top these wouldn’t take 17 ingredients and technically this is still true for this one but it does have quite a few. I also have to note that I generally make this whole thing by ‘eyeballing’ it every year so all measurements are approximate and I highly recommend tasting as you go to make this fit your palate. If you do add the spirits ahead I recommend something like white rum for a lighter, fruit-forward flavor but something like brandy would be a great fit for a more spirit-forward mix.
About 2 Quarts of Fruit Juice - This is really a choose your own adventure but I would argue that classically this includes mostly cranberry, some pineapple, some orange, and a nice sugary can of that frozen concentrated lemonade you get at the grocery store.
Ginger ale - Depending on the size of your punch bowl this is supposed to fill about the top third of the bowl leaving room for garnishes and maybe some ice. If you’re going for a boozy bowl from the get-go substitute a dry sparkling wine.
A Generous Number of Sherbet Scoops - I prefer to use the sherbet that includes orange, lime, and raspberry. Scoop this just before serving and place into the bowl to slowly melt and incorporate into the punch.
Orange Slices, Pineapple Rings, and Frozen Cranberries - For garnish. I like to slice the oranges into thin rounds to get them to sit on top. I buy the precut pineapple rings and dump the juice in for extra measure. I also use frozen cranberries to keep the punch a little colder without diluting it too much. I don’t know anyone that actually eats the cranberries in a punch but make sure if you do have someone that somehow likes to chomp on the bitter-tart cranberries that you warn them ahead of time. You could also add apple slices if you want a whole fruit salad snack in your drink.
Optional: Orgeat or Almond Extract - If no one on your guest list has a nut allergy this can be a really nice addition to add a note of elegance to the punch. A quarter to a half teaspoon of almond extract is plenty. If using orgeat 2-4 ounces or to taste. Orgeat is sweet, so if you go this route make sure you’re tasting along the way and maybe opt for fresh lemon juice instead of the frozen concentrate.
Best Video We Saw This Week
Keeping with the holiday cocktail theme I thought I’d add a classic cocktail video that was aesthetically pleasing.
Here is where this video should be but for some reason I can’t get to embed for the life of me. It is a Cinnamon & Maple Gin Sour that is easy to make and just seasonal enough without being too overdone.
Quick Hits:
I was just talking about how vodka wasn’t anything to write home about but this article argues otherwise and I very much enjoyed the difference in opinion.
Kristiane Westray, notable whiskey educator, has released a single malt scotch whisky “For the Dolls” to support trans UK charity “Not a Phase”
