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This year, bring your holiday cheer in a glass. Choosing the right drink is often overlooked, even though it complements a festive dinner. Instead of the regular beers, cocktails, wines and coffees, there are options out there to spice up your holiday libations. So for your super sweet sweater party or simply to impress your parents when they ask you to whip something up for the family holiday dinner, here are some ideas for wintertime drinks.
Spicing up your wine Forget that same old $10 bottle of red wine that you know your dad likes. Instead, go even cheaper on him, but in a good way. Mulled wine, literally meaning heated and spiced, can easily be mixed with a cheap bottle of red wine and a few simple ingredients. Or you can add brandy to a glass of wine, along with cinnamon, cloves, raisins, almonds or orange zest to give it a festive taste. It's a great way to impress the family or a cheap way to spice up a holiday party without having to go big on the budget.
Christmas cocktails It's a holiday tradition to slip a little brandy in the eggnog, but this is an old-timers drink. This year, leave your grandma's recipe behind and add some excitement to the drink. Instead of adding brandy to the spiced milky drink, throw in one ounce of Kahlua with some ground nutmeg to top. This can be done with regular Kahlua or Hazelnut and French Vanilla Kahlua. For those warm San Diego holidays, www.whattodrink.com has created a blended eggnog drink called a Frosty Noggin. Ingredients: 1 1\2 ounce rum 3\4 ounce Crème de Cacao 3 ounces eggnog 3 cups vanilla ice cream Blend ingredients until smooth and then serve with whipped cream.
Holiday beer Every year, breweries put out arguably their best beers for the winter celebrations. From Sierra Nevada's Celebration Ale to Samuel Adams Winter Ale, beer companies are putting their best brews out. What makes these beers so appealing during the winter months is that they are usually higher in alcohol content to keep your body warm. These ales also carry hints of holiday spices, such as orange, and a bitter finish. These beers are probably not best in a keg, as prices are steep and the taste is acquired. But these are the beers to make an impression on any well-seasoned beer drinker during the holiday seasons.
Coffee and sweets For kids and those not indulging in alcohol this winter, there are options beyond Martinelli's cider and hot chocolate. Any good hot chocolate can be taken further by mixing in cinnamon, vanilla, mint or caramel. For adults, mixing a half a cup of coffee in their hot chocolate works well on cold holiday nights. Replacing mulled wine with mulled cider is also another option for an alcohol-free holiday. By mixing in cloves, cinnamon and orange peels to a good apple cider, kids won't feel left out when the adults are getting silly by the end of the night. With these drinks, you can spice up your year and sweater party or take them home to mom and dad for the holidays. Either way, a few simple recipes is all you need to enhance your drinks this holiday season.
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