Cooking Better Meals For Your Family

Posted on: 15 December 2016

If you throw a big party around Christmas time and you're looking for some interesting drinks, then you should make a list of some nice, cool-weather-appropriate cocktails. While you can always serve the standards (Martinis, Manhattans, and Gin and Tonics) you should also consider making some special cocktails that guests might like during the Christmas season. Below is a list of 4 cool Christmas cocktails and what type of liquor you will need to make them.

Egg Nog

Egg nog is one of the most famous cool-weather cocktails. It's a bit complicated to make from scratch. You need to cook milk, cinnamon, cloves, egg yolks, and sugar in a saucepan. It's almost like you are making a very light custard. However, nowadays you can buy an egg nog mix and just add rum. The mixes are already made and you don't have to worry about cooking the egg mixture to make sure that your guests won't get salmonella poisoning.  So, it's probably best to pick up a carton of egg nog mix and a bottle of rum and make the drink using the mix.

Brandy Alexander

This is another great cool-weather drink. It's not made with a mix and doesn't have eggs, so you don't have to worry about how you are going to make it. It is made with only three simple ingredients. You will need to pick up cognac, as well as crème de caco. These are the two liquor ingredients. The final ingredient is heavy cream. You mix the ingredients and serve them over ice.

Irish Coffee

This is another classic drink. It might not be a cocktail, but it's still a great drink to serve at your Christmas party. It's made by making strong black coffee, adding Irish whiskey, and then topping the coffee with whipped cream. You don't want to add cream or milk to the coffee. The visual presentation is very important. The bottom of the glass should be dark black, and the top should be bright white.

Bourbon Hot Chocolate

This is a fantastic choice for chocolate lovers. You make your favorite hot chocolate, be it from scratch or a mix, add some bourbon, and top with marshmallows if you like. The bourbon pairs really well with the chocolate flavor. If you want a more "alcohol" heavy drink, as opposed to a super sweet chocolate, without adding a ton of bourbon, you might like to make a hot chocolate from scratch using cocoa powder and sugar. This will let you adjust the amount of sweetness in the coco.

For more tips and options, contact your local liquor store.