With Christmas just around the corner, we have selected some of our favourite drinks to celebrate cosy nights in this festive season.

The original Irish coffee recipe

Everybody loves an Irish coffee and this is the perfect drink to round off any special occasion. The recipe used is straight from Foynes, Co Limerick where this deliciously warming drink was invented!  This decadent drink was invented in 1942 by Chef Joe Sheridan at Foynes Port, where planes on route from Europe to America would stop to refuel.

Whipped up one cold winter’s night as a warming treat for passengers who were delayed due to bad weather, the late night tipple went on to become a classic.

  1. Preheat your Irish coffee glass by filling it with boiling water for 5 seconds, then pour the water out.
  2. Add 1 teaspoon of brown sugar and a good measure of Irish whiskey into the warmed glass.
  3. Fill the glass to within 1 cm of the brim with hot, strong black coffee. Stir well to dissolve all the brown sugar.
  4. Carefully pour lightly whipped cream over the back of a spoon so that it floats on top of the coffee.
  5. Do not stir after adding the cream; the best flavour comes from drinking the coffee and Irish whiskey through the cream.

Classic Mulled Wine

Ingredients

  • 750ml bottlered wine
  • 1 largecinnamon stick, or 2 small ones
  • 2 star anise
  • 4cloves
  • 2 strips of lemon zest, pared using a vegetable peeler
  • 4 tbsp caster sugar
  1. Put the red wine, cinnamon, star anise, cloves, lemon zest and sugar in a large pan. Cook on a low heat for 10 mins.
  2. Remove from the heat and cool, leaving to infuse for about 30 mins.
  3. To serve, heat without boiling and pour into mugs or heatproof glasses. Enjoy!

 

Non Alcoholic Punch

Ingredients

  • 100g cranberries
  • 100ml/3½fl oz cranberry juice
  • 500ml blood orange juice (Sanguinello)
  • juice of 1 lime
  • thin wedges of lime
  • thin wedges of orange
  • mint sprigs
  • 600ml Appletise, sparkling apple juice drink
  1. Put the cranberries into a medium size, rigid freezer container, cover with water (by about 2.5 cm), freeze until solid.
  2. Mix the cranberry juice in a large jug (about 1.5 litre) with the orange and lime juices.
  3. To serve, smash the sheet of frozen cranberries into shards and put in the bottom of eight highball glasses. Put a wedge of lime and orange and a mint sprig in each glass, then pour in the mixed fruit juices and top up with Appletise.

 

How To Make The Best Kir Royale

The perfect celebratory drink for New Year’s Eve or any Special Occasion..

A Kir Royale should not be very sweet.

Look for a moderately priced Champagne or dry sparkling wine.

Let the Crème de Cassis sweeten the drink ever so slightly.

Crème de Cassis is a liqueur made with blackcurrant. Only add a little to each glass — 2 to 3 teaspoons will do. Substitutes for Crème de Cassis are Crème de Framboise (raspberry), Chambord or even Crème de Pêche (peach).

To make a perfect Kir Royale, add the liqueur (Crème de Cassis) first then fill the glass with the Champagne or sparkling wine. This way, the drink mixes while you pour. Enjoy!

 

Baileys Flat White Martini Cocktail

Ingredients

  • 50ml Baileys Original Irish Cream
  • 25ml vodka
  • 25ml espresso
  • A few ice cubes
  • 3 coffee beans to decorate

SERVES 2

  1. Pop all the ingredients apart from the coffee beans in a cocktail shaker.
  2. Shake it up until everything is blended and the liquid is smooth as silk.
  3. Strain into a martini cocktail glass and garnish with the three coffee beans.

For More Baileys recipes, see www.baileys.com

 

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