Create your own Christmas cocktail

A question popped into my head last week as I wandered through town, handling an umbrella against the November rain: what exactly makes the perfect Christmas cocktail?

I was hoping to find inspiration at Paladar, surely the best place in Cork for a bit of ‘liquid research’ but, the doors were still firmly shut. So, with no mixologist on hand to consult, I decided the matter required some home investigation.

The perfect Christmas cocktail in my opinion needs to evoke that unmistakable festive feeling of warmth, spice and a touch of indulgence. It should whisper of cinnamon and ginger, perhaps even a hint of mixed spice. Flavours like apple, cranberry, or orange all belong at the Christmas table (or in your glass).

When it comes to the spirit, whiskey brings that lovely Irish warmth, brandy recalls rich puddings and mulled wine, and cider makes for an excellent base if you fancy a mulled cider twist.

Now set the scene: it’s a dark, blustery night, the rain pelting against the window and you’re snuggled up by the fire, feet tucked into woolly socks, a kitschy Christmas movie flickering in the background. That’s the moment when the right cocktail becomes something more than a drink, it becomes part of the ritual.

I took a look at my small but well-loved collection of cocktail books for inspiration. ‘Craft Cocktails: A Collection of Drinks' created by Irish Spirit Makers is one of my favourites. The recipes are clever, accessible, and proudly Irish. One standout is the Wild Red Storm, made with Wild Red Mead from Kinsale Mead Co., paired beautifully with ginger beer.

There’s also their Mulled Mead, a spiced concoction with cinnamon, star anise, honey, and orange that tastes like Christmas in a glass. The beauty of this book is that every ingredient can be found on Irish shelves, no wild goose chase required.

Another lovely read is ‘The Cocktail Garden’ by Ed Loveday. His drinks sound awesome but as an Australian mixologist, many of his ingredients are things you won’t easily find in Cork in December. Still, it’s a gorgeous book.

Then there’s 'The Bartender’s Guide to Gin’, which I picked up purely because I can’t resist a good gin cocktail. One recipe that caught my eye is called Bride’s Mother, a blend of sloe gin, gin, and grapefruit juice. Nothing says Christmas quite like the deep sweetness of sloe gin.

I noticed that my pantry didn’t have the ingredients to re-create any of the recipes. So, I turned to my trusty digital companion, ChatGPT, and asked: what makes the perfect Christmas cocktail? We agreed about the key players of spice, citrus, and a warming spirit. The follow-up question to create one for me was quickly answered with a yes.

With my limited stash of brandy, cinnamon, and a non-sparkling base, it came up with the Fireside Brandy:

60ml brandy or cognac (whiskey would also do nicely)

20ml cinnamon syrup (made by heating equal parts sugar and water with a cinnamon stick, then cooling)

15ml fresh lemon juice

15ml honey

2 dashes bitters (I swapped in Beara Aromatic for Angostura)

and a touch of vanilla extract

Shake it all with ice, strain into a glass, and garnish to your liking.

The result was a rich, warming drink with just enough sweetness and a whisper of citrus, exactly what you’d hope for in a Christmas cocktail. Comforting, aromatic, and best enjoyed by the fire.

The perfect Christmas cocktail isn’t just about the ingredients. It’s about the moment, the quiet clink of glass against glass, the smell of spice in the air and the feeling that, for a little while, everything is just as it should be.