12 Cocktails of Christmas (part one)

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

When I was four-years-old, I was in a preschool program that also had a Kindergarten for five-year-olds. I was a little advanced for my age, so with my parents approval, I got to go to Kindergarten early. At Christmas, we preformed a play for our parents in which I portrayed the part of 10 Lords of Leaping in the 12 Days of Christmas. Every time I hear the song, I think of my first acting role. I even have a Christmas ornament that proudly displays my achievement. I like to think of it as my first Oscar.

A few years back, I saw a recipe-themed story in a newspaper called “The 12 Cocktails of Christmas.” I love this theme, so I am going to reprise it for you my dear readers. Incase you forget the classic holiday tune, the final verse goes a little something like this:

On the twelfth day of Christmas, my true love sent to me

Twelve drummers drumming,

Eleven pipers piping,

Ten lords a-leaping,

Nine ladies dancing,

Eight maids a-milking,

Seven swans a-swimming,

Six geese a-laying,

Five golden rings,

Four calling birds,

Three French hens,

Two turtle doves,

And a partridge in a pear tree

Because the post is rather log, I am going to give it to you in two parts. The first six cocktails are…

Twelve drummers drummingWhen I think of drummers, I think of hard core rockers. These people chug out of the bottle. But for the purpose of this post, let’s salute drummers with the Drum Shot from idrink.com

Drum Shot- ½ part 151 Rum
- ½ part Jagermeister
Mix ingredients in shot glass and “prepare to be tough.”

Eleven pipers piping
Pop bottles with the pipers like you won the championship game. When I mean bottles, I mean bottles of some Piper Heidsiek champagne. I am making this one easy, because the cocktail recipes are going to get a little tricky here.

Ten lords a-leaping
Ah my favorite present. Toast my acting debut with the “Oh Lord” cocktail. I have a feeling that is what my family was saying after my performance.

Oh Lord- 1 ounce Tequila
- 1 ounce Coconut liqueur
- 6 ounce Orange Soda
Pour Tequila and Malibu rum into glass with ice, pour orange soda over the booze. Really easy to make, and is what happens when you run out of everything else to drink.

Nine ladies dancing
Oh what sluts. Just kidding. But let’s pretend these ladies have red hair and don’t like to dance until they are wasted. That means do shots.

Red Headed Slut- 1 oz peach schnapps
- 1 oz Jagermeister
- Splash of cranberry juice
Mix all ingredients in a cocktail shaker, strain.

Eight maids a-milking
Oh yes it's ladies night! Gather the maids together and toss back some egg nog. There are some great pre-made options at your local grocer, or you can make it from scratch with this recipe from Alton Brown of The Food Network.

Alton Brown’s Homemade Egg Nog
- 4 egg yolks
- 1/3 cup sugar, plus 1 tablespoon
- 1 pint whole milk
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 3 ounces bourbon
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 4 egg whites*
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Add the milk, cream, bourbon and nutmeg and stir to combine.

Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks. With the mixer still running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.

Cook's Note: For cooked eggnog, follow procedure below.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, over high heat, combine the milk, heavy cream and nutmeg and bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and gradually temper the hot mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Then return everything to the pot and cook until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Remove from the heat, stir in the bourbon, pour into a medium mixing bowl, and set in the refrigerator to chill.

Seven swans a-swimming
Why are you staring at my swannnn…sorry. I just had a Billy Madison moment. Thinking like Billy, let’s make things simple here by just going with a wine. A wine from the Black Swan Winery.
Six geese a-laying
The obvious choice here is a cocktail with some Grey Goose. While I am not typically a fan of the vodka because of its taste and brand positioning, I’ll include it here – tis the season for peace!

Grey Goose Vodka Martini
- 3 ounces Vodka
- 1 ounce Dry Vermouth
Shake with cracked ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with an olive.
Check back on Thursday for part two.

(Sources: drinkmixer.com, foodnetwork.com, drinkswap.com, cocktailDB.com, blackswanwines.com, marieclarie.com, greygoose.com, idrink.com, drinkstreet.com, plumparty.com, epicourious.com)