Holiday Winter Cocktails

• Christmas rum punch can add gaiety to any yuletide celebration.George Marks/Retrofile/Getty Images
  
  Celebrate the holiday season with a glass of Christmas rum punch. Take a punch bowl and mix together 2/3 cup of lemon juice and 2 cups of orange juice. Pour in 1/2 cup of sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves. Toss in a sliced orange and lemon, 1 ounce of triple sec liqueur and a 4 ounce jar of maraschino cherries. Pour in a 250-milliliter bottle of rum. Refrigerate for at least two hours, then serve. Another holiday drink is a candy cane cocktail. Crush a candy cane into small pieces. Taking a cocktail shaker, mix 2 ounces of strawberry flavored vodka, 2 1/2 ounces of cranberry juice and roughly 4 tablespoons of crème de menthe, depending on personal palates. Toss in ice cubes and shake it up. Wet the lip of a cocktail glass and dip it into the crushed candy cane pieces. Pour the mixture into cocktail glasses and garnish the rim with a miniature candy cane.
  
  

Old-Fashioned Winter Drinks

• Negus was a favorite winter drink among the Victorians.Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images
  
  According to The Jane Austen Centre, the Victorians especially favored Negus during the winter season. Not unlike mulled wine, it was created by Colonel Francis Negus during the 1700s. It is also mentioned in such novels as Charlotte Bronte's "Jane Eyre." To make the classic cocktail, peel the rind off of one lemon and boil it with the juice of that lemon, adding in 2 tablespoons of sugar and a bottle of ruby port. While the mixture is heating, stir constantly until all the sugar has melted and then add boiling water. The amount of water varies based on the desire for more or less potency. Strain the liquid into a serving pitcher to remove the rind and then pour into glasses, dusting the drink with nutmeg. Mulled wine is especially a favorite drink during the winter months in Europe, according to Spotted By Locals. To make it, simply slow heat two bottles of red wine and add in cloves, cinnamon and lemon and orange juice to flavor.
  
  

Warm Drinks

• Add bourbon and rum to make a grown-up version of eggnog.Jupiterimages/Brand X Pictures/Getty Images
  
  Cocktails that are served hot are ideal for winter. Even if it's not Christmastime, make an eggnog cocktail. Mix together 2 quarts of milk, 1 tablespoon of vanilla and 2 2/3 cups of sugar, and simmer. Add 16 egg yolks and 2 cups of heavy cream and whisk it over medium to low heat for roughly 20 to 30 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup of bourbon and 1/2 cup of rum and serve in coffee mugs. Another warm cocktail to keep the cold away is a hot toddy. According to Q Mix a Lot, one theory is that the hot toddy was invented in the 1700s in Scotland to stay warm at night. Heat 4 ounces of water, 1 1/2 ounces of bourbon or whiskey, 3/4 ounce of sugar syrup, a clove and a lemon slice for 20 minutes, stir constantly, and serve.
  
  

Winter-Named Drinks

• Brandy is a key ingredient for a blizzard cocktail.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  When deciding on what winter cocktail to make, go with a seasonally appropriate name like a blizzard cocktail. Take 1 ounce of coffee liqueur, 1 ounce of Irish cream, 1 ounce of brandy, two scoops of vanilla ice cream and one or two spoonfuls of light or regular cream. Blend the ingredients together until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Simply pour the drink into brandy snifters and sprinkle nutmeg on top before serving. You can also try the frostbite. Pour white creme de cacao into a cocktail shaker with 1 1/2 ounces of your favorite brand of tequila. Add 1/2 ounce of cream and 1/2 ounce of blue curacao. Mix it up and pour, topping it off with a maraschino cherry.
  
  

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