We know one of December’s major highlights is wrapping your chops around a tummy-warming cocktail or three. But as the silly season gets into gear, classic go-to’s like egg nog and mulled wine get old quick (love them as we do). So we asked our friends at Mix ‘n’ Match to help us out with their favourite festive cocktails to stir up and sip this month. They’re swinging by The Collective Old Oak soon for a cocktail masterclass, and with the below as a teaser, we can’t wait.
Xmas Old Fashioned
Start your festive season with single malt whisky stirred to perfection with aromatic orange bitters, maple syrup and nutmeg.
What you’ll need
50 ml single malt whisky
2 dashes orange bitters
10ml maple syrup
Peel of orange zest
Dash of grated nutmeg
Ice cubes
What you’ll do
Stir the whisky, orange bitters and syrup in a glass tumbler of cubed ice
Garnish with the orange zest and sprinkle with grated nutmeg
Enjoy your festive, sophisticated cocktail in front of a warm fire – you’ll feel like Don Draper at Christmas time.
A Spoonful Of Honey
Ginger-infused honey, chilled vodka and citrus topped with sparkling wine and served with crystallised ginger.
What you’ll need
25 ml vodka
20ml lemon juice
Ice cubes
Dash of sparkling wine
Ginger leaf
20ml ginger syrup*:
250 ml honey
125 ml hot water
20g diced fresh ginger
What you’ll do
*To prepare the ginger syrup, simmer the honey, ginger and hot water in a saucepan for 1 minute. Allow to cool and strain out ginger pieces.
Shake the vodka, lemon juice and ginger syrup with ice and strain into champagne flute
Top it off with the sparkling wine
Garnish with a ginger leaf
Sip on this ginger lemon medley while listening to your favourite Christmas album.
Festive Negroni
This wintery twist on the Italian classic will keep any Negroni fan happy. A carefully balanced marriage of sloe berry gin, Campari bitters, Italian vermouth and homemade fig syrup.
What you’ll need
25 ml sloe berry gin
30ml Campari
20ml sweet Italian vermouth
Ice cubes
5ml fig syrup*:
200g castor sugar
125ml hot water
3 sliced fresh figs
What you’ll do
*For the fig syrup, simmer the sugar, hot water and figs in a saucepan for 2 minutes. Keep 1 fig slice aside for garnish. Allow to cool and strain to remove fig slices.
Stir the ingredients in a glass with cubed ice
Garnish with a fig slice
Indulge in your Negroni while roasting chestnuts and opening gifts. ‘Tis the season!
The cocktail masterclass is Thursday, 6th December, at The Collective Old Oak.
Featured image courtesy of James, Wineandliquorprices.com