Around the holiday season, bourbon shows another side of its personality: the hot toddy. Warmth and varied ingredients make bourbon the ideal accompaniment to chilly nights and special occasions. Happily most warm bourbon cocktails are easy to create, with the longest time in preparation spent awaiting the arrival of the hot water.
Here are few you may not know, and you most certainly will want to try:
Citrus-Honey Hot Toddy
(Special thanks to Camille Styles, 2013)
Serves 2
3 tablespoons honey
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons hot water
juice of one orange
juice of one lemon
1/3 cup bourbon
2 lemon wedges
2 cinnamon sticks
Stir honey, water, lemon and orange juice in a small pitcher until honey dissolves. Add bourbon and divide between 2 mugs. Garnish each with a lemon wedge.
Hot Coconut Milk Punch
(Thanks to Saveur Magazine, Issue #141)
Makes 1 cocktail
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup coconut milk
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
11/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ounces bourbon, like Pritchard's
Grated nutmeg, to garnish
Heat milks, sugar, and vanilla in a small saucepan over high heat; cook, whisking, until frothy and steaming. Stir in bourbon, then pour into a coffee mug; garnish with nutmeg.
Kentucky Hot Toddy
(Featured in Food 52 Review, 2010)
serves 1
1/4 cup fresh squeezed Meyers Lemon Juice
1/2 cup fresh squeezed Blood Orange Juice
1 teaspoon honey
1 shot of Makers Mark Bourbon
1 cinnamon stick
Hot water
In each tumbler combine juices* with honey and bourbon. Add just enough hot water to fill the glass not quite to the top. Serve with cinnamon stick.
*By adding all the juices this drink does not stay warm for long, so you may want to warm the juices if you are not serving immediately.
Hot Mulled Wine
(Thanks to Julie Hasson, Cooking Light, 2008)
makes 1 cocktail
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup bourbon
1 (750-ml) bottle cabernet sauvignon or other dry red wine
1 sachet Mulling Spice Blend*
Cinnamon sticks (optional)
Combine first 4 ingredients in a large saucepan. Bring to a simmer; cook 20 minutes. Discard sachet. Serve warm. Serve with cinnamon sticks, if desired.
*Sachet Mulling Spice Blend
2 teaspoons whole allspice
1/4 teaspoon whole cloves
1 (3-inch) cinnamon stick, broken in half
1 (3 x 1-inch) strip orange rind
Combine all ingredients on a double layer of cheesecloth. Gather edges of cheesecloth together; tie securely.
