Last year, I offered you a few Christmas gift ideas for home bartenders. I have some more ideas this year and you get the chance to win a great home bartending gift set, valued at $60 (see below for details)! Here are the gifts, pictured left to right above:
Ice molds. Tovolo offers the Colossal Cube and the Sphere ice molds. Each set comes with 2 molds. They’re a cool gift for a whiskey lover as they cool your drink without too much watering-down. Colossal Cube molds are available from Amazon here for $15, and the Spheres for $10 here.
Citrus Squeezer. I joked about this recently on Instagram: for us home bartenders, our squeezers will wear out, so make sure you get a good one. This is a high-quality squeezer by Dalla Piazza that will cover all your squeezing needs: limes, lemons, or oranges, and it’s available from Amazon here for $22.
Muddler. Epicurean has this awesome “wood fiber” muddler that dishwasher safe and really sexy. Muddlers are either wood (so not dishwasher safe), or something much less elegant like aluminum. This is a great mix of style and functionality that’s available direct from Epicurean for $25 here.
Bar Set*. This is a 7-piece set by Swissmar that includes a full-size shaker, strainer, bar knife, jigger, stirrer, bottle opener – all in a nice stand. It’s a perfect collection of necessities to start you home bar, available for $60 from Amazon here or win a set from Simple Cocktails (see below)!
Bar Knives. This is a 2-knife set by Joseph Joseph – 1 straight edge, 1 serrated – that magnetically sticks together to protect the blades and your fingers. I think it’s actually designed as a cheese knife set, but it’s also perfect for a traveling bartender. The set retails for about $12 at local cooking shop, from Amazon here, or or direct from Joseph Joseph here.
Measuring Jug. Also by Joseph Joseph, this jug measures any fluid from 1 oz to 1 liter, with a cool double-reservoir design. Much like the knife set, this is a good gift for both foodies and home bartenders. This runs about $15 at your local cooking shop, from Amazon here, or direct from the company here.
Zester. This zester by Kitchen IQ has a removable reservoir on the back to catch and measure your citrus zest (which you’ll see occasionally in a cocktail recipe). It’s $15 at your local cooking shop, or get it from Amazon here.
*For a chance to win your own Swissmar cocktail set, pictured above, shipped direct to you from the manufacturer, post a comment below listing your favorite Christmastime cocktail. 1 entry per person, U.S. residents only. I’ll draw a name randomly on December 16th. Good luck!
I like the spicy, boozy whiskey drinks all winter. Give me a manhattan, a sazerac, or anything with a lot of bitters. Warms ya right up!
My homemade egg nog. It uses both brandy and spiced rum.
It’s simple but we are loving “apple pie with a crust”
Mistletoe: muddle 8 cranberries w/1 tsp bar sugar; add 1/2 oz lemon juice, 2 oz gin (I like St. George’s Terrior for this one), 1 egg white. Dry shake, wet shake. Garnish with a few crushed cranberries.
My favorite cocktail at Christmas is the “Oatmeal Cookie”. Good times and memories w/family we visit on Christmas Eve.
Egg Nogg!
I make my own cranberry liqueur. My favorite Christmas cocktail is a Cosmo made with that liqueur. It has a lovely bright red color and tastes relish.
Sharon, will you send me your recipe? It sounds GREAT!
enjoy egg nog usually but honestly just tried maple whiskey – amazing. Happy holidays indeed 🙂
The Suburban. It’s not strictly a Christmas cocktail, but it is certainly indulgent! The combination of Rye, Rum and Port always sounds weird, but it really is a thing of beauty, and perfect for those wintry nights by the fire.
What are the ratios on that recipe? I gotta try it.
3 parts rye, 1 part dark rum, 1 part port, dash of angostura bitters ( optional dash of orange bitters). Stir with ice and strain into a martini glass.
This just made my list of things to do today. 😉
I enjoyed the one you made the other night, but I am looking forward to trying the Maple Crown recipe you showed on the show! Most often winter has me simply adding Kalua and cream to my coffee!!!
Congrats Carlos! You win the home bar set from Swissmar!
I am going to look for some bitters now, thanks!
I like a Grinch!! Chick, but delicious.
“Pumpkin Pie” Shooters.
My favorite Christmastime cocktail is a blanco tequila with Bailey’s and butterscotch schnapps, has a warm spice to it!
Can’t go wrong with a rye manhattan, garnished with cherries soaked in brandy
This one is a game changer and sure to convert anyone reluctant about eggnog – cheers!
Baltimore Eggnog
Chill 7oz goblet
Into metal mixing tumbler goes:
1/2 tsp powdered cinnamon
1 whole egg raw (no shell)
1 oz heavy cream
1 tbs superfine sugar
1/2 oz brandy
1/2 oz traditional white rum
1 oz Madeira wine (or Sherry substitute)
Fill 2/3 with ice, cover and shake vigorously to chill, mix, aerate & dilute.
Strain through Hawthorn & mesh strainer into goblet.
Garnish generously with grated nutmeg (the surface should be covered – there can’t be too much nutmeg) – grated onto surface of the drink.
Now THAT’s a drink! 🙂
I love a good ‘ole bourbon eggnog. My wife hates eggnog, and even though I lost an eggnog chug challenge once in glorious fashion, I still love the stuff. I like it light on the egg, heavy on the nog, if ya know what I mean.