Six winter cocktail favourites - recipes from some top New York bartenders
Half a dozen drinks you can make at home to warm the cockles of your heart this Christmas, including pumpkin bourbon eggnog and mulled wine
Holiday cocktails are perhaps the most polarising of adult beverages – especially when it comes to eggnog and mulled wine, which are loved and reviled in equal measure. To clear up some of the confusion, we asked six top New York bartenders to give us their favourite seasonal cocktail recipes.
But remember: “The best parties are where the host has minimal work to do,” says Giuseppe Gonzalez, owner of Suffolk Arms, “and can actually participate and enjoy their own party – they’ve dialled back the hors d’oeuvres, made a punch.”
The recipes range from riffs on the classic Negroni to an update on Irish coffee. If you’re feeling more adventurous, there’s even one with sweet potato juice.
Red Right Hand
Sam Anderson, beverage director of Mission Chinese Food, suggests putting a Christmas tree spin on the popular Negroni by switching out gin for rum. Then, instead of vermouth, swap in the floral, resinous Zirbenz Stone Pine Liqueur, made from cones of the Arolla pine harvested in Austria every July. Add some lemony, mouth-numbing Sichuan peppercorn oil and you’ve got what he calls the Red Right Hand, a further riff on the restaurant’s own Tingling Negroni.
Ingredients: