There's nothing like marching into the silly season with a good party. And have we ever been more ready? It's time to get out the cocktail glasses, stock up on ice and get into the party zone.
When it comes to Christmas parties, I confess to being a bit of a spritz fan. Devised in Italy back in the 1800s, as a way to water down wine, the spritz is such a terrific tipple.
I've heard it said that no night that began with an Aperol Spritz ever ended in murder and mayhem. You can spritz the night away in a light and breezy fashion and wake up the next morning feeling not at all shabby.
Doubtless, you'll be familiar with the Aperol spritz (lots of ice, with roughly equal parts Aperol, bubbles and soda depending on how potent you like it) but the formula of base plus bubbles and soda in roughly equal parts, plus garnish, can happily be applied using other liqueurs or aperitifs as the base. Think peach schnapps, prosecco, soda and a garnish of fresh sliced peach. Go bitter and bubbly with Campari, prosecco and soda and a chunky wedge of orange or tangelo squeezed and dropped into the glass. A Pimms spritz sees the addition of prosecco and lemonade with a garnish of mint and cucumber. Orange colombo (a personal fave from Provence), makes a refreshing (less sweet) variation on the Aperol spritz matched up with chilled prosecco and soda water and a garnish of orange rind. Cheap fizz is all you need. High-quality Champagne is wasted here, a nice dry prosecco or a bottle of local inexpensive methode traditionelle will do the trick nicely.
The secret to the spritz is having everything super-cold. Chill down your base and your bubbles and don't hold back on the ice, you want the glass at least half full before you start putting your spritz together.
If hard liquor is more your thing, then you may want to head down into serious cocktail territory, the likes of a negroni or martini. Potent cocktails like these are a great opening gambit for a party but you don't want to let them run past a couple of rounds or your guests will be passed out under the table.
Don't forget to serve lots of food to act as blotting paper. As old-fashioned as they are, people still love sausage rolls, little sausages with a spicy chutney and hot cheese rolls. If you've got a crowd coming, then a glazed ham with fresh rolls, sliced cheese and mustard and other condiments are all you need.
Here are some other delicious cocktails to make your party sing. Cheers and wishing you all a very Happy Christmas.
Minty Mojitos
The combination of lemon, lime and a hint of mint makes this a such a refreshing cocktail.
Ready in 10 mins
Serves 6
40 mint leaves, very coarsely torn
4 limes, thinly sliced
2 tbsp sugar
1½ cups white rum
½ cup lemon or lime cordial
ice cubes
4 cups soda water/club soda, chilled
Roughly muddle together mint leaves, limes and sugar to bruise mint. Add rum and cordial and stir to combine. Fill a jug with ice, pour in the mint mixture and top up with chilled soda water.
Cosmopolitans
Popularised by Carrie and her friends from Sex and the City, cosmopolitans are such a pretty colour - and so easy to drink.
Ready in 5 mins
Serves 4
8 ice cubes
1½ cups cranberry juice, chilled
¾ cup vodka, chilled
¼ cup orange liqueur
2 Tbsp lime juice
Twists of orange zest, to garnish
Place ice cubes in a cocktail shaker or small jug. Add all ingredients except orange zest and stir to combine. Strain into small cocktail glasses and garnish with skewered orange zest.
Ginger Mules
Rum, green ginger wine and freshly grated ginger juice give this fabulous cocktail its kick.
Ready in 5 mins
Serves 6
4 cups ginger ale, chilled
1½ cups dark rum
¾ cup orange juice
½ cup lime juice, to taste
½-1 cup green ginger wine or soda
3 Tbsp finely grated fresh ginger
Ice cubes, to serve
A handful of mint leaves, torn (optional)
Mix ginger ale, rum, orange juice, lime juice, and green ginger wine, if using, in a jug. Squeeze the juice from the grated ginger into the jug, discarding the fibre. Serve over ice, garnished with mint if desired.
Ginger mule without a kick
For a non-alcoholic version, replace the rum with iced tea and omit the green ginger wine.
Alternative drinks
by Yvonne Lorkin
(Mojitos)
Kererū Hedgerow Foraged Ale 330ml 4% ($5.50)
If rum makes you run a mile and beer is more your style, then channel your hankering for herbality by launching into this mildly hopped American style pale ale, brewed with barley, rye and blueberries, nettle leaves, blackberry leaves, St John's wort, lemongrass, ginkgo leaves and an assortment of other herbs and spices to create aromatic articulation and lushness on the palate.
beercellar.co.nz
(Cosmopolitans)
Sawmill Brewery Bare Beer No Alcohol Pale Ale 330ml ($60x24pk)
Feel like you need a night off the vods but still want to sip something that's very much Sex in the City without the "next day you'll feel s***ty" carry on? Then fret not my friend, because once you pssht the cap off this non-alcoholic yet max-flavour beer you'll be disco ready in no time. Fresh, zesty and generously proportioned, this is the hoppiest, most intensely flavoured example in this category that I've ever tasted. And the best thing is, it doesn't have the word "ZERO" plastered all over the label, so you won't attract the attention of those godawful "Aww why don't you have a decent drink mate?" knobs.
sawmillbrewery.co.nz
(Ginger Mule)
Honest Six-Spiced Ginger Beer & Lime 330ml 5% ($24x6pk)
Love the idea of getting all Yo Ho Ho with the rum and ginger but don't want to do the hard yards? Work smarter, not harder, I say. Grab a chilled can of one of this new pre-mixed cantail from the folks at Honest Rum. Now I'm not big on the old RTDs but this example has shivered my timbers. Using their unique, six-spiced botanical rum as the base and muddling in some mint, lime and ginger beer for good measure, it's a crispy-fresh, knee-wobblingly spicy sip with pure, dry, defined flavours that are dangerously delicious.
drinkhonest.co.nz