The Twelve Days of Christmas - Will's Selections

Season’s Greetings my fellow wine lovers. On the seventh day of Christmas I am gifting you the knowledge on how to make three sophisticated seasonal drinks. (Don’t thank me yet, you may be cursing me mid-summer when it is unacceptable to be drinking warm wine)

Seven swans a-swimming Mince Pie Manhattan

The Mince Pie Manhattan is one of Kevin’s recipes but I have stolen it for my list as it is just too good. (Don’t let him know I said that…) The Jersey Black Butter is an inspired twist for a festive Manhattan. If Manhattans are one of your favorite cocktails or you simply want an elegant festive drink to get merry on, then this mince pie-inspired version of the classic recipe is worth a try. Kevin has been serving up this Christmas cocktail for the past 5 years and has perfected it! Here’s how to make one at home:

Per drink you will need:

35ml infused Makers Mark Bourbon 

15ml Noilly Prat Dry Vermouth

2 dashes of Angostura Bitters

1 spoon of Jersey Black Butter

Muddle the Jersey Black Butter, stir the bourbon and vermouth over ice for 30 seconds; double strain then add the bitters.

To infuse the bourbon

 250ml of Bourbon

 1 cinnamon stick

 Clementine zest, pith removed

 25g raisins

 2 cloves

 Gently heat the Bourbon but do not let it simmer or boil. Add the ingredients to a bottle then pour in the bourbon. Seal with a lid and leave to infuse, at room temperature, for a minimum of 48 hours prior to use.

****************************************

Eight maids a-milking - Grapefruit Whiskey Sour

 

 

Now our eight maids a-milking would never give us soured milk but in this drink the sourness is what hits the spot. A combination of whiskey, the sweet and bitter and tart grapefruit soda and the sour pink lemons creates this pretty and seriously refreshing cocktail. Besides the fact that these not only look the part and it’s super easy to create, they are refreshing and somehow the whiskey and the grapefruit are a really nice pairing. One more idea for a lovely autumnal or winter cocktail that you definitely need to put in your arsenal.

 

 

 

Ingredients

90ml of Bulliet Bourbon whiskey

Cold grapefruit soda

Lemon wedges (optional, for garnish) Ice

Instructions

Fill the two glasses with ice and add the whiskey and then top with cold grapefruit soda. Add lemon wedges and serve immediately. And my final drink is my version of Mulled Wine. The extra garnishes are not necessary but if you want to wow people at a dinner party it is really worth the effort.

****************************************

Nine ladies dancing - Warm Wine Bellini

 

Ever tried mulled wine and Champagne... together? Turns out - it actually works! It can also be relied on for putting everyone in the festive spirit after one quick sip. Fancy giving it a try? Here’s how to do it:

 

 

Ingredients

 

100ml Champagne or sparkling wine such as Vazart-Coquart

 1 bottle of a mellow red wine

 100g white sugar

 1 vanilla pod, halved lengthways

 1 lemon

 4 cloves (optional, for garnish)

 2 star anise (optional, for garnish)

 2 cinnamon sticks (optional, for garnish)

 2 clementines, cut in half (optional, for garnish)

 

Method

 Make the mulled wine syrup using the ingredients above. Pour the syrup in to the champagne flute, top with the Champagne and gently stir.

 

Thanks for reading. I hope you are now inspired to make your own Christmas drinks. Tag us on Instagram if you post a photo of any of the recipes you try out. It would be great to see your creations!

 

Merry Christmas,

Will