Here are four seasonal hot drinks to look for on your ski holiday this year – and their recipes for those nostalgic nights after they’ve ended!
Hot Buttered Rum
The history of hot buttered rum in the U.S. dates back to colonial days and, while imagining butter floating in a glass of rum might not seem a very appealing thought to you, don’t worry – the drink only needs as little as a teaspoon of it and the greasy hints of it are evened out by the warming winter spices, while maple syrup adds a nice sweetness to it.
To make this drink at home, place 1tsp of unsalted butter into a heatproof glass, add a tsp of maple syrup, allspice and rum and pour a heated apple juice over it, mixing it until the butter has completely melted. Add a cinnamon stick as a stirrer and top the drink with grated nutmeg.
Crème Brulée Martini
While this cocktail might not be that much about the aesthetics of a burnt cream as the warm, tingling sensation in your mouth after indulging in this mixture of Vanilla vodka, Frangelico and Cointreau, however, the crushed Graham-cracker or cinnamon rim will certainly bring the famous dessert to your mind. Served in luxury ski resorts in Aspen and elsewhere, it’s an absolute must-try for this year’s winter holiday.
If you want to mix one up at home, mix30g of Vanilla-flavoured vodka, 30g Frangelico and 15ml of Cointreau in a cocktail shaker with ice, stir gently and strain into a cocktail glass. You can also add a dash of Bailey’s to it. Finish by rimming the edge of the glass with brown sugar or crushed Graham crackers.
Jaeger Tee
Although its name bears a striking resemblance to a well-known German digestive, Jaeger tea doesn’t even have a drop of the famous beverage in it. In fact, it’s just a black tea spiced up with rum and Schnapps in it. A hunter’s drink, if we are to believe its name.
So, to add a little edge to that afternoon tea of yours, you’ll need 90g Schnapps, 90g rum and 180ml water with juice from one orange. Heat all of these together in a saucepan together with 1 black tea bag. Once it starts boiling, let simmer for 5 minutes and add sugar to taste.
Bombardino
A massively popular drink in Italy’s ski resorts, it does what its name suggests and, going down your throat, it turns into a small bomb, high in alcohol and temperature to warm you up almost instantly after the long hours spent in the cold. Several variations exist for this drink – with coffee, rum or whisky.
The most basic way of making a Bombardino at home is by mixing 1 part rum or brandy with 1 part Advocaat or eggnog, heating it up and topping it with whipped cream.
Just a word of wisdom before you start ordering those – most of them are served as après-ski drinks meaning that they’re to be enjoyed after you’ve taken off your skis and made it back to your luxury catered ski chalets. Mixing alcohol with cold weather and altitude can sometimes result in some nasty injuries, so do not drink and hit the slopes. Some U.S. ski resorts have already started to fine people and confiscating the people who appear too tipsy on the piste, while in Austria and Italy they’ve even started breathalysing people. So perhaps you should stick to Starbucks while on your skis.
Now, which of these drinks are you going to try on this holiday?
Gavin Harvey is a blogger and a true winter sports enthusiast. Despite being a personal trainer, even he sometimes cannot resist the lure of hot, sugar (and whatnot) loaded holiday drinks. Getting ready for this year’s winter holiday, he blogs for Dynamic Lives.
