Hot Drinks & Winter Warmers

[haresfur]

I guess I'm out of sync with the majority of you, but here's another warm drink report:

The NY Times Magazine recently did an article on "Bar Necessities", including two favorites from Audrey Saunders.

Another fun choice for the winter is her Hot Port Sangaree, which has the advantage of much better storage characteristics compared to the T&J. You can make up a bottle of the stuff and drink it off and on for the whole winter.

3 cups : port (Graham's Six Grapes specified)

2 oz : pomegranate molasses (Al Wadi specified)

3 oz : simple syrup (1:1)

2 oz : fresh lemon juice

2 oz : Cointreau

5 dashes : orange bitters (Regans' specified)

5 dashes : Angostura bitters

Lemon twists

Combine all liquids in a bottle. To make a single serving, heat 4 ounces together with a lemon twist to just below the simmer. Strain into a toddy glass and garnish with a new lemon twist.

I tried this with "Keeper's Glove" Australian tawny port (yes I bought it because I liked the name) and found the pomegranate molasses made it taste like Concord grape juice to me. I was a bit shy on the lemon so I think some more of that and topping up the mason jar with port will help. I'm thinking that it might be better to add fresh lemon when mixing the drink. I've also been heating in the microwave rather than on the stove top. Much more efficient for a single serving.

But when I added some Inner Circle rum (red) to the drink it was awesome. I'd say maybe rum:mixture of about 1:8 should do. I could see some mulling spices might be nice, too. With the Inner Circle and port, I think it would be fair to declare this an Aussie Cocktail.

[Chris Amirault]

First cool fall night here in New England, so I made a Rum Toddy with Inner Circle green, Plantation Jamaican, Cruzan blackstrap, some demerara syrup, Fee's OF bitters, and dashes of cinnamon and allspice tincture. Slice of lemon on top.

[EvergreenDan]

Chris - did you eat some plum pudding with that?

I had a nice Lagavulin neat to cheer up my depression at the end of summer. Followed it by a bit of Bowmore Legend, which less than half the price, is a darn good value. I felt warmed.

[haresfur]

Fine-tuning a genever toddy for the bar at which I'll be working, and I'm curious to know if anyone out there has recipes for such a thing.

Did this turn out?

[haresfur]

Dreary day and I had the oven on so I thought I'd do a very loose interpretation of the Smoking Bishop:

pierce about a dozen cloves into the skin of a small orange, place in a bowl and put in the oven with whatever else you are doing and roast until the skin is slightly brown and the orange is getting soft. Muddle the orange in a bowl with 3 teaspoons demerara sugar. Place the orange in a pan with 1 stick cinnamon, 8 oz merlot, 4 oz ruby port, and 1 oz Campari. Heat and strain into a large mug. Grate nutmeg on top.

I think next time I'd do 50:50 wine:port. The Campari is a pretty interesting sub for grapefruit.

[Chris Amirault]

Fine-tuning a genever toddy for the bar at which I'll be working, and I'm curious to know if anyone out there has recipes for such a thing.

Did this turn out?

Oh, yes, sorry -- it even got published here locally, though I doubt that there was a run on genever as a result!

Genever Toddy

4 hot water

slice lemon

2 genever

1 T lavender honey tea syrup*

1 t maraschino

*8 parts water (1 c), 1 part dried whole black tea (1/8 c), 4 parts honey (1/2 c), 2 parts dried lavender (1/4 c). Boil the water and steep the tea for 4 minutes. Strain, check the temperature and heat if necessary to get in the 180-200F range. Add the lavender and honey and steep until cool.

Sorry for the volume instead of weigh on the syrup recipe, but it was written for a restaurant kitchen that doesn't like to get out the scale for those crazy bartenders.

[FrogPrincesse]

The temperatures dropped very slightly in San Diego last week and it's the start of the holiday season, so I was in the mood for a hot buttered rum. I found a recipe for the Volcano House Hot Buttered Rum in Jeff Berry's BeachBum Berry remixed: rum, lemon juice, maraschino liqueur which adds something interesting, sugar, black tea (I used Earl Grey), lemon peel, cloves, butter. Rumdood posted the recipe on his blog a while back (here). Note that the version in BeachBum Berry Remixed does not list the rum! (A typo for sure).

This was a good occasion to crack open a bottle of Kraken (sorry). Nice drink. I will make sure to bring the recipe for my next ski trip!

For reference, hot buttered rum is also discussed in Cold Weather Drinking, plus there are dedicated threads (this one and this one) and another one about Hot Rum.

[KatieLoeb]

I have a hot toddy in my back pocket for folks feeling under the weather I call a Belfast Cease Fire. 1,5-2 oz. Irish whisky, 6-8 oz. English Breakfast Tea, demerara simple syrup and a thin lemon wheel with a star anise poked into the center floated on top. Looks pretty, tastes delicious, Irish and English in the same mug playing nice with each other. Easy Peasy.

Edited November 29, 2012 by KatieLoeb (log)

[EvergreenDan]

1,5-2 oz. Irish whisky, ... Easy Peasy.

Sub Scotch and it's easy peaty.

[David A. Goldfarb]

My Irish Cappuccino of the moment:

1/2 tsp brown sugar

1 oz scotch--I'm being extravagant for a mixed drink with Balvenie Doublewood 12

One shot of espresso

Foamed milk floated on top as for a single cappuccino.

Simple, if you can make a good espresso, but it's more concentrated and intense than a typical Irish coffee. I'm calling it a keeper.

Edited December 31, 2012 by David A. Goldfarb (log)

[Jason Perlow]

I no longer have a need for cold weather drinks. I like drinking iced tea in hot tubs in the end of December.

[Jason Perlow]

But.. But... if I was GOING to make a cold weather drink, it would definitely be a really hot cup of coffee with a hit of Irish Whiskey and some steamed milk.

[Tri2Cook]

I think one of my new favorite winter warmers is the Tabonga & Jerry I mentioned in another thread. A tiki twist on the Tom & Jerry that I read about on the Tiki Central forums. It's tasty...

1/2 cup Tom & Jerry batter

1 oz Cruzan Black Strap rum

1 oz brandy

1/2 oz falernum

1/2 oz lime juice

In a tall mug, top with hot water, garnish with freshly grated nutmeg and a cinnamon stick.

[andiesenji]

I have a hot toddy in my back pocket for folks feeling under the weather I call a Belfast Cease Fire. 1,5-2 oz. Irish whisky, 6-8 oz. English Breakfast Tea, demerara simple syrup and a thin lemon wheel with a star anise poked into the center floated on top. Looks pretty, tastes delicious, Irish and English in the same mug playing nice with each other. Easy Peasy.

I don't drink alcohol (allergic) but I like to keep up with new ideas for my guests. This sounds something like what my great grandmother used to call "Tipsy Tea" also made with Irish whiskey, tea, treacle plus a cinnamon stick and a few peppercorns. Possibly lemon but I only have the rest of it in a note from one of her journals.

[lindag]

Now that we're full into Fall I love making hot (alcoholic) drinks. 

I have a couple recipes that I've used for many years; one, called Percolator Punch I make every year.

This year so far I've only made a hot cider with orange slices, clove studded apple, cinnamon - recipe from Emeril.

What hot drinks do you make?  And what alcohol do you add?

[blue_dolphin]

I don't think this really qualifies as "making a drink" but I like a warm mug of Trader Joe's spicy cider with a couple of glugs of Laird's bonded apple brandy.  A wedge of orange peel spritzed over the top if I'm being fancy.

[Deryn]

Hot toddies. So comforting. Butter, brown sugar, dark rum, and sometimes a squeeze of lemon - the latter especially if one has a mild sore throat.

[Jaymes]

Gluhwein,of course. And Hot Buttered Rum.

But my favorite of all is a Hot Apple Pie.

It's not only my personal favorite autumn/winter drink, it's what I always serve at parties.

You start with mulled, spiced apple cider. Then add a generous glug or two of Tuaca. Top with whipped cream and a light dusting of apple pie spice.

For parties, I always have my spiced cider simmering in the crockpot, with the bottle of Tuaca, the whipped cream, the pumpkin pie spices and an assortment of mugs next to it. The aroma of the spiced cider is heavenly when my guests arrive. And children, or anyone else that prefers a non-alcoholic drink, can have just the cider.

[FrogPrincesse]

Hot Buttered Rum is a favorite during ski season.

 

Lots of other ideas here.

[Jaymes]

Hot Buttered Rum is a favorite during ski season.

 

Lots of other ideas here.

Thanks for that link to that fun previous thread. I had to laugh when I saw that the very first post was about a Hot Apple Pie.

I well recall the first one I ever had. It was the mid-1980's and we had just moved to Fairbanks, Alaska. Our new neighbors invited us to dinner at a popular local restaurant, the Chena Pump House. Our table was not ready when we arrived so we all repaired to the bar, a beautiful room overlooking the Chena River. The aroma of hot spiced drinks was unmistakable. I was pondering which of the many intriguing concoctions on the "Hot Drinks Menu" to order when our host said, "Hot Apple Pies all around!"

And Hot Apple Pies all around it has been for me ever since.

[lesliec]

We may get into the old discussion about what you call cider may not be what I call cider ... no, let's not: what I call cider is alcoholic, and our current favourite is this one.  There we go.

 

Anyway, to your question.  There's a recipe we enjoy that came in a little booklet attached to a Domaine de Canton bottle.  It's called a Ginger Toddy and comprises two parts hot cider (or tea, or sake) to one part Domaine de Canton.  We put it all in a Pyrex jug and warm it up in the microwave, and it's a really good, simple, warming drink for a cold evening.

[Jaymes]

When I was a kid, my grandmother often fermented cider down in her basement.

To the never-ending delight of my brother and his buddies.

[lindag]

Now that the weather is turning for some of us, I find myself looking for soothing hot drinks.

I have a few:  Percolator Punch, Irish Coffee, Tom & Jerry, et al.

What are your faves?

I’m always looking for new options.

[Craig E]

I'm a big fan of the Fernet & Jerry.

[eugenep]

I've had hot toddy in restaurants during cold winters out but I probably like coffee + hazelnut (Frangelico) at home. 

 

I think the caffeine + alcohol combination was originally banned when Four Loko came out with it but teenagers luuuved it 

 

I've tried the reformulated legal version and it's like overly sweet hard liquor and soda