It’s time for my annual cocktail advent. 2022 has been a busy year as everyone got back into the new normal and started to learn to live with COVID. Thankfully (so far) this year BC has not have the magnitude of natural disasters we had just one year before. Last year was record breaking rain, this year was record breaking drought. Believe me those of us affected by last years disasters were on high alert and biteing our nails as November rolled around this year. This year I am very grateful for not being evacuated. I decided to try something different this year and instead of a whole month of Cocktails, I would focus on the last 12 days leading up to Christmas.
I have put together a great list of holiday cocktails again this year and will feature some local amazing distilleries in the process. Check out past years holiday cocktail advent’s 2020 2021. British Columbia has lots of amazing distilleries and every year I locate a few more. In usual fashion, I aim for “beginner” level and easier cocktails because lets face it we are all busy parents. This years cocktail advent as well as last year are a great go-t0 resource for festive cocktails. I hope you find it fun and festive too!
I would love to know which ones you have tried and which ones are your favorites. If you have ideas on cocktails you would like me to feature, send me an email tina@modernmama.com
Be sure to check back daily until Dec 25, as a new festive cocktail will be posted to this blog as well as Modern Mama Vancouver and Modern Mama Fraser Valley Facebook and Instagram.
12 days till Christmas….
EspressoNog
- 1oz Wayward Distillery Depth Charge Espresso/Cacoa infused vodka
- Top up glass with Egg Nog of choice (I prefer creamy types like Natrel or Lucerne brand)
Depth Charge Vodka Infusion is the embodiment of everything we love about coffee: it’s deep, dark, nutty and delicious! Instead of cold brewing on water, we cold brew espresso beans and cacao beans on our super smooth vodka, capturing all the complex coffee aromas and real dark chocolate flavours. It’s then finished with just a drop of our own honey to tie it all together.
Depth Charge is mouthwatering, roasted, spirited, balanced and full of coffee flavour.
Perfect on ice and in all your favourite coffee cocktails 🙂
11 days till Christmas…..
Holiday Mai Tai
This one makes an excellent holiday party punch!
- 1 part dark Rum
- 1 part amaretto
- 3 parts orange juice
- 3 parts cranberry juice
- Add crushed ice
- Garnish with orange slices or cranberries
10 days till Christmas
Tonites cocktail is courtesy of my friend Shauna. She is the reason I do a holiday cocktail advent every December. She finds the most amazing cocktail recipes and is so creative with her photos!
Tipsy Reindeer
2 oz Red Curaçao
1/2 oz Rum
1 oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Orange Juice
Garnish with an orange wheel and a orange twist.
Pour the Red Curaçao, Rum, Pineapple & Orange juices into a shaker with ice, and shake vigorously, then strain into a chilled Hurricane Glass. Then garnish.
9 days until Christmas
Krupnik Christmas Cocktail
- ice
- 1.5 oz Krupnik or spiced rum
- lime juice (1/2 lime)
- 3 oz cranberry juice
- Top up with ginger beer
In a glass half the size of what I used in the picture or using the same size glass and doubling the recipe….
Fill glass with ice, add Krupnik/Spiced Rum, cranberry juice and squeeze 1/2 lime then top up with ginger beer.
Wayward is the first distillery in Canada to ferment and distill honey into spirits. They are located on the Island and give back 1% from all spirit sales to the production and promotion of bees and pollinators. Krupnik won gold in the 2019 Canadian Artisian Spirit Competition. It is a polish spiced honey liqueur. Their website says that Krupnik is addictive and you will be sold on the first sip, and they really are not wrong. It is a category all it, is own. It is a blend of honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, raw vanilla and citrus peel. It is amazing with sparkling apple cider, ginger beer, chai tea and simple hot water and lemon. I highly recommend it, I am confident you or those you buy it for, will not be disappointed.
8 days until Christmas
Hunters Tea
Another Cocktail that I have to give credit to my friend Shauna for, this one looks so good. I love the flavor of maple syrup.
1.75 oz of Jägermeister
1.75 oz Chilled Black Steeped Tea
1/2 oz Maple Syrup
3/4 oz Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice
Garnish with Lemon Twist
Add the Jägermeister, steeped black tea, lemon juice, and maple syrup. Stir with ice, then pour over craft ice into a chilled rocks glass. Then garnish with your lemon twist.
7 days until Christmas
Sazarac
- 1 1/2 oz Rye whiskey or Cognac
- 1/4 oz Absinthe
- One sugar cube
- Three dashes Peychaud’s Bitters
This one is strong! Absinthe made from wormwood is 70 proof alcohol. My hubby’s fav drink!
6 days until Christmas
Caramel Apple Cider Hot Toddy
- 3/4 cup caramel vodka (or if you don’t have caramel vodka do what I did and melt a few caramels in the pot and use regular vodka)
- 4 cups of apple cider
- 4 -8 oz of bourbon (optional)
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- whip cream (for the garnish)
In a pot put all the ingredients and heat it up. Put a mug or heat tolerant glass and top with whip cream.
5 days until Christmas
Rudolph’s Tipsy Spritzer
This one is a throwback from last year, due to the insane amount of requests I am getting from my kids for the KIds-version (sans Vodka). The original recipe can be found online. I used the amazing Family Reserve Vodka from Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery for this cocktail. I love how easy it is to make!
Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery Family Reserve Vodka is made from the Okanagan apples it is gluten free and tastes smooth.
- 1 oz orange juice (the fresher the better)
- 1 oz cranberry juice
- 1.5 oz soda (sprite/7-up or for a not so sweet version use club soda)
- 1.5 oz vodka
- splash of maraschino cherry juice
- splash of lemon juice
- cranberries, maraschino cherries or Okanagan Spirits drunken cherries) for garnish
Pour all the ingredients into a glass with some ice. Garnish as you please. That’s it!
4 more days until Christmas
Rosemary Cranberry Mulled Wine
- 1 750ml bottle white wine
- 4 oz of spiced rum (or use Kurpnik)
- 2 Rosemary sprigs
- 1 cup cranberries
- 2 cups apple juice or white cranberry juice
- orange peel (from 1 orange – make sure there is no pith)
- 1 anise star
- 5 cloves
- 1 cinnamon stick
Makes approx 3-4 mugs
Put all the ingredients in a pot and bring it to a boil. Let it simmer for 15 minutes
Enjoy!
3 days until Christmas
Cranberry Moscow Mule
What holiday season is complete without a Moscow mule. Throw in cranberry juice and it’s a great festive drink.
- 1oz rum ( I used Wayward Distilleries honey rum)
- Juice of 1/2 lime
- Fill the rest of the copper mug with equal parts ginger beer and cranberry juice.
Garnish with lime slice and/or frozen cranberries.
2 days until Christmas
White Christmas
- 1 oz amaretto
- 1 oz vodka
- 1-2oz heavy cream
Garnish with grated fresh nutmeg
Put all the ingredients in a shaker with ice. Pour into a glass and top with nutmeg.
Christmas Eve
Tonight’s cocktail is refreshing and festive. Featuring Wayward Distilleries Rasberry Gin. This cocktail is a nice way to wrap up the busy day.m Raspberry gin is great on its own over ice or mixed in with some bubbles.
Raspberry/Mint Mojinto
- 1 bunch fresh mint
- 1/2 cup raspberries (fresh or frozen)
- 1 tbs caster sugar/simple syrup
- 1/2 lime
- ice cubes
- 30 ml Wayward rasberry gin liqueur (or non flavored gin)
- Club soda
In a glass, add mint leaves and most of the raspberries, leaving aside some for garnish. Use a muddler or small wooden spoon to crush them together.Add sugar and lime, and muddle again to release the juice. Top with ice and then pour over the gin. Fill glass with soda water and garnish with reserved mint and raspberries.