The cold weather is upon us here in Seattle. Well, cold weather for us at least, and we did get snow so that counts, right? Anyhow, with the temperature dropping we decided to dig through all of our posts on warm or hot drinks and do a little roundup, as well as play around with a new creation.

After an initial sweep to see what we had published, we realized we weren’t very good about tagging drinks that are hot, but with some intrepid Googling we found most of them and it turns out we have quite a few more drinks than we thought. From MxMo themes that gave us the Chalet and the Kentucky Star, to puns like the Tea-totaller for repeal day, to experimenting with classic cocktail styles you don’t hear about much these days like Sangarees, Nogs & Possets, and Flips, to just wanting something warm to drink, we’ve had a fair number of yummy warm drinks for cold autumn and winter days. Fond memories all around.

With all those behind us, we wondered what we could do for a new warm drink. We’ve already explored variations on most of the classics like boozy hot chocolate, mulled wine or ale, Tom & Jerrys, etc. Maybe take a cue from hot chocolate and do something like a sipping caramel? We wanted something a bit lighter and also boozier, so we went with a base of half and half and added the caramel flavor by melting in some caramel sauce. The caramel seemed to call for some spice to liven it up, and cinnamon was a gimme. We added a little bit of cinnamon simple to introduce that flavor. But what spirit to use? With the caramel and cinnamon, the hay/pepper/barrel flavors of aged tequila seemed like they might work, and indeed they did. We now had a warm, rich, spicy drink that still had a bit of bite. Good but not great. After digging through different amaros and bitters, we settled on adding a splash of amaro Montenegro, which played up the existing cinnamon and pepper flavors while adding a touch of herbal bitterness.

Snow Day

• 4 oz half-and-half
• 1/2 oz caramel sauce (make some if you feel inspired, otherwise buy a jar of something good quality like Fran’s)
• 1/4 oz cinnamon simple
• 2 oz anejo tequila
• 1/4 oz Amaro Montenegro
• 1 dash cinnamon

Scald the half-and-half. Dissolve the caramel sauce in the hot half-and-half, then stir in the cinnamon simple. Pour the tequila and amaro in a glass, pour the hot dairy mixture over it and stir. Garnish with a dash of ground cinnamon.

• Nose: Mostly cinnamon, hints of cream, caramel, and sweet hay
• Palate: Really interesting combination of caramel and sweet, vegetal hay right at the start. Sharp, herbal, almost medicinal bite on the transition into the mid-palate. Mid-palate is a nice juxtaposition of barrel notes, cinnamon, and alcohol bite balanced by creamy dairy. Finish is more faint herbal notes, more cinnamon and a hint of chocolate.

A rather interesting and yummy use of tequila in our opinions. Warm and cinnamon-y with a nice creamy aspect, but still showcasing the tequila clearly. Perfect when you want something a little bit different for the holidays.

Wherever you are, we hope it’s not too cold, or if it is that you can enjoy a nice warm cocktail to get you through the night. Well to be honest, we hope you can enjoy any kind of cocktail. We hope everyone is having a great holiday season and until next time, cheers!