Ottawa, ON
December 29, 2017
In addition to the delicious sparkling wines we showed earlier today on CTV Morning Live, CTV’s Sarah Freemark and Sommelier Matt Steeves showed that pouring a fine cocktail for your guests is a terrific way to enhance your New Year’s Eve celebrations. These cocktails are not only super special and easy to make, but they’re also guranteed to be loved by your guests.
Best yet, you don’t need to be a skilled bartender like Tom Cruise in Cocktail to make these delicious cocktails, although your guests will likely think you are.
Cocktails have been poured at the world’s finest establishments for a very long time. From the storied “American Bar” at the Savoy Hotel in London, to the famous West Village New York City speakeasy “Employees Only” (where their Manhattan cocktail is out of this world delicious), these fine establishments, and countless others around the world, know how to please their patrons with delicious mouth-watering cocktails. The good news is, you too can treat your guests to some delicious cocktails, just like those served at the world’s best cocktail bars. With only a few ingredients (I suggest investing in quality ingredients just as any renowned cocktail bar does), you can whip up these delicious cocktails and please your guests with your delicious creations.
A few of my favourite cocktails for New Year’s Eve celebrations are listed below. Note that the spirits that go into these cocktails are terrific on their own, which is key to producing a fine cocktail.
- Inn Fashion (Inniskillin Vidal Icewine + Ardbeg Scotch Whisky)
- Downtown Cognac Manhattan (Hennessy V.S. Cognac + Carpano Vermouth)
- Ardbeg Whisky Sour (Ardbeg Scotch Whisky, lemon juice, egg white, simple syrup)
- Eggnog & Rum (Brugal Anejo (aged) Rum + Farmboy Eggnog)
Here are the recipes for those New Year’s Eve perfect cocktails:
Inn Fashion Cocktail (an Icewine twist on a storied Whisky cocktail)
1½ oz. Inniskillin Vidal Icewine
1½ oz. Ardbeg Scotch Whisky
2 dashes of Angostura bitters
Preparation: Combine all ingredients in a rocks glass with ice. Stir to chill. Garnish with an orange twist.
Seasonality: Throughout the holidays, with New Year’s Eve being a great time to savour this fine cocktail. Ideal all winter long and also great as an after-dinner summer drink (basically there is always a great time to enjoy one of these cocktails).
Tasting Notes: A sweeter version of the age-old Old Fashioned cocktail, and just as smooth.
Buy Inniskillin Vidal Icewine at LCBO – $49.95
Downtown Cognac Manhattan
Ingredients
1 ½ oz Hennessy V.S- ½ oz Sweet Vermouth
- 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters
- Garnish: Cherry
Directions:
Add all ingredients to a mixing glass with ice and stir until chilled. Strain into a chilled cocktail coupe or rocks glass. Garnish with a cherry.
Buy Hennessy Cognac at LCBO – $34.75 (375ml)
Ardbeg Whisky Sour
Ingredients:
2 oz Ardbeg 10 Year Scotch Whisky
1 oz freshly squeezed Lemon juice
1 oz simple syrup
egg whites from 1 egg
a few drops of bitters
Directions:
Add all the ingredients, except the bitters, to a shaker, and dry-shake (without ice) for 15 seconds to get the egg whites creamy and blended with the Whisky and lemon juice.
Add ice, shake, and strain into a rocks glass.
Garnish with 3 drops of the bitters.
Buy Ardbeg 10 Years Old Scotch Whisky at LCBO – $100.10
‘Ardbeg Ten Years Old is revered around the world as the peatiest, smokiest, most complex single malt of them all. Yet it does not flaunt the peat; rather it gives way to the natural sweetness of the malt to produce a whisky of perfect balance. Named World Whisky of the Year in 2008. It’s non chill-filtered with a strength of 46% ABV.’
Light gold in colour, this smoky peat-rich Whisky bursts with complex layers of sweet and savoury flavours. Smoky citrus fruit, espresso, smoked meat and fish, briney, it would be idea with salty Charcuterie platters, or freshly sucked oysters with a splash of Ardbeg on top, or mixed in any cocktail, my favourites include a Whisky Sour and an Ardbeg Caesar. Take it next level and mix it with some delicious Inniskillin Canadian Icewine as an “Inn Fashion”, an epic winter cocktail version of the Old Fashioned.
Brugal Anejo (aged) Rum and Eggnog – One of the best holiday cocktails!
Who doesn’t love a nice Rum and Eggnog?
The key to ensuring a delicious Rum and Eggnog is quality ingredients. Selecting a tasty rum and a specialty eggnog are key. Today I’ve selected the value priced Dominican Republic produced Brugal Anejo (aged) Rum along with Farm Boy’s Eggnog – my favourite nog in Ottawa. Top it with some nutmeg, a cinnamon (stir) stick, some dark chocolate shavings, and voila, delicious! Try shaking in a cocktail shaker first without one and then with ice to add further creaminess to this delicious holiday favourite cocktail.
Established in 1888, Brugal founded the Dominican’s first aging facilities. The Añejo is a blend of three to five year old rums aged in used bourbon and American whiskey barrels that give sweet, spicy notes along with a rich amber colour. Look for notes of butterscotch, figs, dried fruit and baking spice on a long finish.
Quercus Vino 
Leave a Reply