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"There is so much you can get away with in winter that you just can't do in our long hot summer--eggs, cream, spice," says Alan, co-founder of cocktail catering and education outfit, Tipsy Texan. "During summer I make use of melons, cucumbers, berries and garden herbs to make refreshing drinks, sometimes by the pitcher to share with friends. But the style is different once the temperature drops. The drinks become short and tight, though big and boozy with flavor, very spirit-forward instead of produce-forward."
To that end, Alan reaches into his stock of darker spirits this time of year: Think whisky, aged tequila and rum, ports, sherries, and vermouth. Smoother and richer, these libations are alcohol's version of comfort food.
"People often ask me what my favorite winter drink is," says Alan. "I explain that there is not necessarily one drink that I prefer so much as a style of drink." With this in mind, we asked Alan to share three of his favorite holiday-time cocktail recipes.
"Joe [at Tipsy Texan] does a cocktail called The Abbeville, which is a great winter drink for people of all tastes," says Alan. "He uses locally made Treaty Oak Rum with a little Texas grapefruit, sweetens the cocktail with Steen's, a cane syrup from Louisiana that you can buy at Central Market or Whole Foods. It is a variation on the Hemingway Daiquiri, though it is has a flavor uniquely its own.
Abbeville Cocktail
1.5 oz white rum
0.25 oz maraschino liqueur
0.75 oz fresh lime juice
0.5 oz Steen’s 100% Pure Cane Syrup
0.5 oz fresh grapefruit juice
Shake ingredients vigorously with ice to chill. Strain into a cocktail glass rimmed with caster sugar, cinnamon and cayenne (ratio of 1:1:1/2). Garnish with a dash of Peychaud's bitters.
"In the winter I love Manhattans and Manhattan-esque cocktails such as my Prefect cocktail," says Alan. "I went to public schools but have always been intrigued by old guard east coast prep schools and colleges; many of the latter have their own cocktail such as the Harvard, the Princeton, or the Yale. The Prefect is a tribute to my fantasy of what I would drink if I went to an Ivy League school, though I imagine most of them are drinking Keystone Light like college kids everywhere else."
The Prefect
1.5 oz 100 Proof Rye Whiskey
0.75 oz Ruby Port
0.5 oz Averna
Barspoon Creme de Cassis
Dash Fee Brothers Whiskey Barrel Aged Bitters ( if you have them; if not, use Angostura)
Stir ingredients with ice to chill. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with a real maraschino cherry.
"I have also been doing a lot of punches lately," says Alan. "Punch was the main thing people drank in colonial times, before the 'individual' cocktail that we take for granted now was developed. My Harvest Punch is easy to make by the glass or by the bowl, and has been a hit everywhere I've taken it this season.
Harvest Punch
1.5 oz Treaty Oak Rum
1.5 oz Fresh pressed apple cider
0.5 oz fresh squeezed lime juice
bar spoon simple syrup
Dash St. Elizabeth's Allspice Dram (an allspice liqueur available at the Austin Wine Merchant and other retailers, a fabulous holiday mixer)
Dash Cruzan Blackstrap Rum (or other dark rum)
If an individual cocktail, shake ingredients with ice to chill, strain into an ice-filled rocks glass. If making for a group, multiply the recipe and serve in a punch bowl with a large block of ice. No garnish.
Finally, Alan revealed a secret recipe to The Informed Drinker described as - direct quote - "seriously adult slumber party gone wild." (Think of this for your New Year's Party).
STEP ONE: Fill an ice cream ball with a batch of Brandy Alexander and a little extra cream.
STEP TWO: Freeze.
STEP THREE: Eat and share.
STEP FOUR: Try not to do anything you'll regret in the new year.
Godspeed, holiday boozers.
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