If you have been following my blog for a while, you will remember that a few months ago I started a new hobby: making cocktails! I am a total newbie to this, a real amateur, and I'm still learning and experimenting. But it is incredibly fun! I have absolutely loved making new drinks and researching different cocktail traditions. I have to say that this blogmas post was probably the most fun of all to put together (drinking lots of cocktails for research purposes for the blog :)).
In lieu of this new hobby of mine, I decided to buy a book called 'The 12 Bottle Bar', by David Solmonson and Lesley Jacobs Solmonson, which was recommended to me by a friend. I have found this book to be pure joy! The idea of the book is to show you how you can make hundreds of absolutely stunning cocktails with a bar consisting of only 12 different bottles, including different liqueurs, spirits and bitters. The book is really perfect for beginners, or anyone wishing to get into mixology, but it's also just a very interesting read in general! The 12 bottles are clearly laid out for you, as well as all the equipment you need and any extra bits and pieces - everything, in short, to get you started on your mixology adventure.
There are so many fantastic recipes in the book; we get a short background story to each one, as well as all the information we need about which type of glass suits the drink, whether it should have ice and if so, cubed or crushed, and extremely clear directions - perfect for someone like me (who easily gets confused and stressed in the kitchen)! The drinks are also divided up by theme, with anything from 'Poker Night' to 'Brunch' to 'Christmas', hence where the idea for today's blogmas post came from! I also wanted to mention how user friendly this book is. If you have any questions about certain drinks or ingredients this book has the answers. It is clearly written by people who love their cocktails, and this love shines through the book and passes on to the readers. It has such a personable and intimate style and flair to it - I don't know if I would still love my new hobby as much as I do today if it weren't for this fabulous book. On a side note, it would also make a fantastic gift this Christmas!
For this blogmas post, I decided to choose three different cocktails from the Christmas section of the book to showcase and hopefully give you a few ideas about possible options for nice drinks you could make this holiday. I chose one lighter kind of punch that would be perfect for a party or a few people, one rather special coffee cocktail, perhaps for Christmas morning, and one more festive and warming drink. In the book there are many more options, including non-alcoholic ones, but I chose these as they give you a good variety and they also suited my personal life very well - basically, they sounded delicious so I made them!
1. White Glögg
This is a fruity, lemony punch made with white wine and brandy. It's almost a bit like white mulled wine and I thought it would be interesting to make something a little different than the more typical, rich, red kind (incidentally, the book also has a great recipe for Red Glögg if you are looking for something a little more traditional and mulled-winey). It's definitely a light drink, but it is still warming, so it's nice for the cold winter's evening. And it's perfect for Christmas parties as you can just keep it warm on a very low heat for a long time.
2. Bombardino-Calimero
This is a cocktail, served in a hot mug, which contains brandy, advocaat (a dutch egg liqueur) and hot coffee, finally topped with whipped cream. I absolutely loved it when I tried it, it feels like such a treat and I think it would make a very special drink for brunch on Christmas day or Boxing day. By the way, the book contains a recipe for advocaat if you fancy making your own - I was lazy and bought mine, but I imagine a homemade one would taste extra delicious.
3. Hot Buttered Rum
Of these three Christmas cocktails, this one probably feels the most festive. It's got all those really traditional Christmassy spices like nutmeg, cinnamon and cloves, it's buttery and warm and so nice to cuddle up with in front of the fire! It's important to note that this recipe contains spiced butter, which involves a separate recipe to be made the night before. This then gets added to a rum - the book calls for amber rum, but I only had dark rum and I think it also worked really well.
I would love to know what festive drinks you are making this Christmas, please let me know in the comments below!
Follow my blog with BloglovinLabels: Life
