Holiday Cocktails

[langod]

What do all y'all make for Holiday cocktails? Any family traditions?

I don't have a traditional go-to, but I thought this might be a good one for this year. It sounds tasty -- kind of a take on a Kir. It seems fairly simple to make and looks impressive:

Blackberry Christmas Sparkler

1 cup fresh blackberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 bottle champagne

In a small saucepan, combine blackberries, sugar, and water. Bring to a boil on high heat, and then reduce to a simmer and let cook for approximately 15-17 minutes. The blackberries will become soft and bright in color and a pinkish purple syrup will form. Making sure it cooks down enough is essential to keeping the ombre effect. Take off of the heat and drain the blackberries, keeping the syrup in a separate bowl. Set both aside and allow to cool.
Once blackberries and simple syrup are cooled, spoon about 4 tablespoons of syrup into the bottom of each champagne flute (this recipe makes 4 drinks)
Top with champagne.
Garnish with fresh blackberries or the cooked blackberries, and a sprig of rosemary.

 

[bobmsp]

That looks terrific. If you wanted to be really fancy (and if you like rosemary) you could toss a sprig of rosemary in with the berries as they cook.

Tom & Jerrys are big around here for Christmas/New Years but I've never tried one. I might have to make a batch to see what they're about.

 

[eleuther0s]

I tried making eggnog last year but made the mistake of using a recipe that has you cook it and my eggs congealed and turned the thing into a mess. I was going to try an "aged" eggnog recipe this year where you make it mid-October and then let it sit in your fridge for two months but the price of all the alcohol that was supposed to go in it was way beyond my budget. Maybe next year. This year will probably just be the store-bought stuff.

 

[BSAGuy]

Bufala Negra
4 basil leaves
1 teaspoon aged balsamic vinegar
1/2 ounce Simple Syrup
Ice
1 1/2 ounces bourbon or rye
1 1/2 ounces chilled ginger ale

In a cocktail shaker, muddle 3 of the basil leaves with the vinegar and Simple Syrup. Add ice and the bourbon and shake well. Strain the drink into an ice-filled rocks glass, stir in the ginger ale and garnish with the remaining basil leaf.

 

[eezee]

What do all y'all make for Holiday cocktails? Any family traditions?

I don't have a traditional go-to, but I thought this might be a good one for this year. It sounds tasty -- kind of a take on a Kir. It seems fairly simple to make and looks impressive:

Blackberry Christmas Sparkler
View attachment 710126
1 cup fresh blackberries
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
4 sprigs fresh rosemary
1 bottle champagne

In a small saucepan, combine blackberries, sugar, and water. Bring to a boil on high heat, and then reduce to a simmer and let cook for approximately 15-17 minutes. The blackberries will become soft and bright in color and a pinkish purple syrup will form. Making sure it cooks down enough is essential to keeping the ombre effect. Take off of the heat and drain the blackberries, keeping the syrup in a separate bowl. Set both aside and allow to cool.
Once blackberries and simple syrup are cooled, spoon about 4 tablespoons of syrup into the bottom of each champagne flute (this recipe makes 4 drinks)
Top with champagne.
Garnish with fresh blackberries or the cooked blackberries, and a sprig of rosemary.

Looks good!! Thank you for sharing!!

 

[garyg]

You all are way past my level. In the wintertime, usually just about now, I remember the Boulevardier.

 

[FL shaver]

^^ That looks great! ^^ Will be trying it soon!

 

[langod]

The Boulevardier is is a fantastic cocktail.

 

[eezee]

You all are way past my level. In the wintertime, usually just about now, I remember the Boulevardier.

Wonderful cocktail!!

 

[TexLaw]

Those all sound wonderful, and you got me thinking. Cocktails never have played much of a part in my holiday revelry, although there were some Thanksgivings when my uncle would make up a bunch of Kir Royals for the grown-ups. There also was the year, some time ago, where he did not think Mrs. TL or I liked wine 001_huh. He went to the liquor store to figure something out for us. I'll never forget him nervously waving over to an ice-filled bucket and saying "the guy said this was good. I hope you like it." Samuel Smith's Imperial Stout. Yeah, Uncle Floyd. We'll make that work.

We mostly enjoy good wine on holidays, no matter which one. That said, I've kicked off many a Christmas Eve with a Martini, and finished many a wild and hairy Christmas Day with a neat whisky. Mrs. TL joins me, sometimes, but she also enjoys a coffee with Bailey's or a "grown-up" cocoa (with bourbon, rum, Bailey's, Kahlua, some manner of schnapps, or whatever makes Momma happy at the moment).

 

[dws]

I like a good old rum & maple syrup Hot Toddy or a spiced rum & eggnog with a dash of crushed nutmeg over the Christmas Holidays. It's the only time of the year I can get into rum.

 

[OtherMoe]

You all are way past my level. In the wintertime, usually just about now, I remember the Boulevardier.

just made my first one, very nice indeed.

 

[dreadpirate]

The most memorable holiday drink I had was some home made eggnog that had 151 proof Barcardi rum in it. The eggnog was sooo smooth that the rum was barely detectable until it was much too late Ended up spending the night there. These days I am too old to drink Barcardi and certainly not 151 proof!!