Did you know that 33% of Americans name fall as their favorite season, and 56% of people report being happier in fall?
Here in the US, it seems like we love getting cozy, and what could be cozier than cuddling up with a hot beverage? If you really want to turn up the sweater weather spirit, there's no better way to do it than with a hot liquor drink.
The word "cocktail" is synonymous with warm weather relaxing, poolside unwinding, and summer get-togethers. Because of this, many people forget about all of the delicious hot liquor drinks that exist.
With the array of hot liquor drink recipes you can try, nobody needs to be sipping iced apéritifs when the weather gets chilly.
Put the cozy into cocktail hour and hunker down for a list of the best hot liquor drinks to try this fall and winter.
Spiced Apple Hot Toddy
As we get into the full swing of fall, what could be a more fitting hot liquor drink than a spiced apple hot toddy?
What's more, hot toddies are very simple to make. For this hot liquor drink recipe, all you'll need is:
- 2.5 cups light apple cider
- A few cinnamon sticks
- A pinch or two of cloves
- 3.5 tablespoons of honey (preferably light honey)
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons of Woodford Reserve bourbon
Simply heat up all the ingredients, barring the bourbon and lemon juice. Once it's reached boiling point, remove from the heat and strain out the spices. Add your bourbon and lemon juice and garnish with a few apple slices.
All you need now is a crackling fire or a bracing fall afternoon on which to sip this zingy yet smooth drink.
Tanteo Jalapeño Apple Cider Margarita
If you want to add a kick to your apple cider and enjoy it in a cold-weather cocktail—you can also whip up a Tanteo Jalapeño apple cider margarita.
For two servings of this hot and spicy take on a margarita, you will need:
- 8 oz apple cider
- 3 oz Tante Jalapeño Tequila
- 2 oz fresh orange juice
- 1 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1.5 oz agave nectar
Simply warm up your apple cider, and then combine together with the other ingredients in a pre-warmed hot toddy glass. To top things off, you can also garnish with some nutmeg and cinnamon.
Sonoma Maple and Mint Toddy
Do you want a warm, yet refreshing hot toddy? This maple and mint toddy is both relaxing and invigorating, making it one of our favorite hot tea liquor drinks.
For ingredients, you will need:
- 1.5 oz Sonoma bourbon
- 0.5 oz maple syrup
- 0.5 oz fresh lemon juice
- 3 oz mint tea
Start by brewing up a cup of mint tea. Then combine with the bourbon, maple syrup, and lemon juice in a toddy glass and add a wedge of lemon for garnish.
Cinnamon Tequila Hot Toddy
While we're on the topic of hot toddies, have you ever had a tequila hot toddy? Whisky is the classic alcohol choice for hot toddy-style drinks, but tequila can be a great alternative. Its smooth, fruity, and sweet flavor profile make for a perfect hot toddy pairing.
For this specific tequila hot toddy recipe, you will need to start by making a 1 oz batch of cinnamon syrup, by combining equal parts water and sugar and a couple of cinnamon sticks. Bring this to a boil and remove from the heat.
If you wish to make a tequila hot toddy for two, double the amounts.
Then, in a glass, combine your cinnamon syrup with:
- 1.5 oz Hornitos Black Barrel Tequila (or similar tequila of your choice)
- 0.25 oz honey
- 4 oz hot water
- 0.25 oz fresh lemon juice
- One dash of vanilla essence
Stir all your ingredients together and garnish with a stick of cinnamon for a spicy touch.
Earl Grey Hot Buttered Rum
Hot buttered rum is a longstanding hot alcohol drink that dates back right to colonial times. If you want to add a twist to an old favorite, try out this Earl Grey variation.
For one serving, you will need:
- 4 oz steeped Earl Grey tea
- 2 tablespoons of a dark rum, such as Pappa's Pillar
- 2 teaspoons of brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon of softened, unsalted butter
- 1 dash of ground cinnamon
- 1 dash of ground allspice
- 1 dash of ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
Start by steeping the Early Grey tea to your desired strength. Then combine the butter, spices, sugar, and vanilla essence in the bottom of an Irish coffee glass or hot toddy glass. Mix well, then add your rum and top it off with Earl Grey tea.
Prince Pum King
Pumpkins are symbolic of fall and have a place in most people's hearts. But did you know that many of us love pumpkins not for how they taste, but rather for the way they make you feel? Research shows that America's fondness for pumpkins has everything to do with nostalgia and cozy feelings.
If you want to channel some pumpkin nostalgia and fall feels into a creamy, boozy treat, then you have to try making Drambuie's Prince Pum King. Made with real pumpkin, this spicy fall-inspired drink has its origins in a recipe from Prince Charles Edward Stuart himself.
For two servings of this regal hot alcoholic drink (because it's so good you need to share it with someone), you will need:
- 3 oz pureed pumpkin
- 4 oz milk
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 2 oz Drambuie
- Frothed milk or whipped cream for garnish
Combine all ingredients except for the Drambuie and steam together until hot, being careful not to boil the mixture. Once hot, double-strain the mixture into cups and stir in your Drambuie. Top off your cups with a generous cap of frothed milk or whipped cream.
Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile Hot Chocolate
If pumpkin's not your thing, and you're more of a chocolate fiend, this recipe is for you.
The Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile hot chocolate recipe is one of the few hot liquor drink recipes that involves made-from-scratch hot cocoa. The mild chili makes for a great pairing with the hot chocolate, and the fruity tamarind and spice notes add dimension.
To make the hot chocolate you will need:
- 100% cacao powder
- Turbinado sugar
- Hot water
Mix the cacao and sugar together in a 1:3/4 ratio. For instance, if you use 1 cup of cacao, you will need to add 3/4 cup of sugar.
While stirring, add hot water slowly until you reach a thick, liquid consistency. For two servings of Ancho Reyes hot chocolate, you will need to make 4 oz of this chocolate mix.
If you have extra, you can store it in a sealed container in your refrigerator for future use.
Besides the hot chocolate mix, you will also need 4 oz of half-and-half and 1.25 oz of Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile for each serving.
To prepare your spiked hot chocolate, pour the half-and-half into a saucepan and heat until almost simmering. Add 4 oz of chocolate mix per serving, and pour into coffee cups, followed by Ancho Reyes Ancho Chile.
For garnishing, you can finish things off with some orange zest and a sprinkle of cinnamon, or a whole stick of cinnamon.
St-Germain Chocolat Epice
Don't feel like making hot cocoa from scratch? We have you covered with a St-Germain Chocolate Epice recipe. This boozy hot chocolate calls for tequila and St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur, and couldn't be simpler to make.
For two servings of this cozy, hot, liquor drink, all you'll need is:
- 2 oz Silver Tequila
- 1 oz St-Germain Elderflower Liqueur
- 8 oz instant hot chocolate of your choice
Heat up the instant hot chocolate according to the packet instructions. Add the tequila and elderflower liqueur, pour into mugs, and finished things off with a few marshmallows.
Kahlúa Hot Chocolate
Here is another simple (but still spiked) hot chocolate recipe that also delivers a coffee kick. Kahlúa and hot chocolate are the best of two wonderful worlds—hot coffee liquor drinks and hot cocoa.
For two servings of a classic Kahlúa hot chocolate you'll need:
- 2 cups of hot chocolate
- 1 oz Kahlúa coffee liqueur
- 1 pinch of cinnamon
- 1 pinch of nutmeg
Simply add your Kahlúa and spices to two steaming cups of hot chocolate. If you want to add some extra decadence to this grownup version of hot cocoa, you can pile on a few marshmallows, or add some whipped cream, and drizzle your drinks with salted caramel and chocolate syrup.
Do you want to make this same recipe using homemade hot chocolate? No problem.
All you have to do is heat 2 cups of milk with 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1.5 tablespoons of unsweetened cocoa powder. Add the spices, pour into cups, spike those mugs with Kahlúa, and you're all set.
Hot Buttered Bourbon
Earlier on we recommended a hot buttered rum recipe, but have you ever tried hot buttered bourbon?
Making hot buttered bourbon is almost exactly the same as hot buttered rum, but instead of adding rum, you can swap it out for a bourbon of your choice.
For this delicious hot buttered take, we'd recommend something like Old Elk Wheated Bourbon. Its notes of cream, vanilla, toffee, toasted almonds, and clove make for a perfect pairing with the spices and buttery richness.
Start by muddling together:
- 1 tablespoon of softened, unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons of brown sugar
- 1 dash of ground cinnamon
- 1 small pinch of ground cloves
- 1 dash of ground nutmeg
- 1 small pinch of salt
These quantities are enough for one serving.
Add one tablespoon of the butter mix to each cup, fill just over halfway with hot water, and stir well. Then add 1.5 oz of bourbon, a dash of Angostura bitters, and top your cup up with more hot water if needed.
Last Stop Darjeeling
Another of our favorite hot tea liquor drinks is the Last Stop Darjeeling courtesy of Pearl & Ash in NYC. This fine restaurant has closed, but renditions of its hot liquor drinks recipes live on.
A perfect pick-me-up for those late winter afternoons and evenings, this is also one of the best hot liquor drinks to try when you're feeling tired and don't want to make anything too complicated.
As far as ingredients go, for our version of a Last Stop Darjeeling, per serving you will need:
- 3 oz Sandeman Character Medium Dry Sherry
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 pot of Darjeeling "2nd flush" black tea
- 3 teaspoons agave
Start by brewing up half a pot of Darjeeling, then simply add the remaining ingredients to your cup, top up with tea, stir, sip, and enjoy.
Salted Caramel Vodka Cider
Want to know an ironic fact about vodka? The word, "vodka" comes from the Slavic word, Voda, which means "water."
Of course, drinking vodka like it's water is not a good idea, but sipping it in a delicious hot liquor drink definitely is.
There aren't many hot liquor drinks that include vodka, but the ones that do definitely don't disappoint.
If you have a salty caramel tooth, then we'd recommend you try your hand at this recipe. For ingredients for one serving you will need:
- 6 oz apple cider of your choice
- 1 oz Van Gogh Dutch Caramel Vodka
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 small pinch of salt
Bring the apple cider, cinnamon, and salt to a simmer in a saucepan, remove from the heat and add the vodka.
From here, you can either serve it up in a mug as is—or get extra decadent and top your mug off with a generous dashing of WhipShots vodka caramel-flavored whipping cream.
Spiked Mulled Wine
What better way is there to celebrate in the colder months than with a steaming hot cup of mulled wine? And if you really want to unwind, you can also take things up a notch and make a spiked mulled wine.
Out of all the most frequently drunk alcohols, red wine is the one that makes you the sleepiest, thanks to its melatonin content. With some added port and rum, this recipe is going to bring extra warmth to your fingers and cheeks, and send you to bed feeling appropriately soporific.
Because mulled wine is best made for a small crowd, the below ingredient quantities are enough for 8 servings:
- 1 lemon
- 12 oz water
- 4 star anise pods
- 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
- 12 whole cloves
- 4 sticks of cinnamon
- 1 bottle of dry red wine
- 18 oz ruby port
- 1 orange cut into quarters
- 4 oz sugar
- 8 oz dry aged rum
Start by removing the zest from your lemon, cutting it into quarters, and squeezing the juice out of two of the quarters. The remaining quarters you can cut into thin slices.
Bring the water to a boil in a large pot, and add the spices. Simmer for 10 minutes and then add the wine, ruby port, orange quarters, sugar, lemon zest, and lemon juice.
Simmer for another 10 minutes, then remove from the heat and strain to remove the citrus pieces and spices.
Measure out 1 oz of rum into each mug, fill with mulled wine, and garnish with a lemon slice and cinnamon stick.
Want to Try Your Hand at These Hot Liquor Drinks This Season?
As you can see, there's no need to be clutching cold cocktails in the chilly months of the year. Instead, pay tribute to the season by trying your hand at some of these hot liquor drinks.
Are you in need of ingredients for making some delicious, hot, spiked drinks? We've got you covered.
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