If you’ve been searching for a way to spice up this year’s seasonal festivities, these holiday cocktails are just what you need. Thanksgiving is almost upon us! It’s time to breakout your baking sheets, dust off your dutch oven, and shine your cocktail shakers. When it comes to meals during the holiday season, the menu is predictable; turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and green bean casserole if you’re lucky. But what about the drinks menu?
We decided to reach out to our friend Chanel Turner, founder and CEO of the luxury vodka brand FOU-DRÉ, to help us make this year’s holiday menu a little more bold. Turner asked Chef Camorrow Jones-Drake of Say Yes to Guest to help out and, well, the results are mouth-watering.
From butternut squash crostini with a honey-apple cider aperitif to pecan vanilla bean crème brûlée with a brown sugar espresso martini, FOU-DRÉ and Chef Jones-Drake created a perfectly modern holiday spread. Jones-Drake is a Texas-based chef and blogger whose flair for the creative shines through her modern twist on these classic holiday dishes. This four-course feast with signature holiday cocktail pairings that use FOU-DRÉ’s distinct flavor profile are sure to wow your family and friends.
Holiday Cocktails: Appetizer Edition
Butternut Squash Crostini with Whipped Ricotta and Brown Butter Sage Sauce
The first on our list of holiday cocktails is a honey-apple cider aperitif. FOU-DRÉ’s natural flavors combined with apple cider and honey simple syrup highlights the sweet/earthy flavor in the butternut squash crostini. A touch of Campari compliments the depth and richness found in the browned butter and the whole grain, seeded bread. This perfect pairing is the ideal start to any holiday meal.
Cocktail: Honey-Apple Cider Aperitif
Tasting Notes: earthy, fruity, & herbal
♦ 1 part FOU-DRÉ, 1 part Apple Cider
♦ 1/4 part Campari
♦ 1/4 part Honey Simple Syrup
♦ Garnish with cinnamon stick & apple slice in a Coupe glass
Holiday Cocktails: Entree Edition
Turkey Roulade with Cornbread Sausage Stuffing, Mixed Potato and Caramelized Onion Gratin, Green Bean Almondine, and Cranberry Sauce
This luscious lavender and sage libation is one of our favorite holiday cocktails from Chef Jones-Drake. With egg whites that add a velvety finish, the texture of the drink mimics that of the gratin, stuffing, and gravy. The base flavors of sage and thyme that are found throughout the meal are enhanced by the iconic Angostura Bitters. FOU-DRÉ mixed with amaretto rounds out the cocktail with its floral, fruity, and nutty flavors. The lighter ingredients of this delicious drink are perfectly suited to pair with a heavy meal like turkey roulade and cornbread sausage stuffing.
Cocktail: Lavender Libation
Tasting Notes: bright, nutty, & earthy
♦ 1 part FOU-DRÉ
♦ 1/4 part amaretto
♦ 1/4 part lemon juice
♦ 1/4 part lavender simple syrup
♦ 1-3 dashes Angostura Bitters
♦ Egg white
♦ Garnish with sage leaves in a rocks glass
Holiday Cocktails: Dessert Edition
Pecan Vanilla Bean Crème Brûlée
Holiday cocktails can be tricky to pair with desserts as they both tend to be on the sweeter side. Yet this brown sugar espresso martini goes superbly with any decadent confection. The bitter coffee beans in combination with FOU-DRÉ’s fruity flavor profile and a cube of brown sugar provide an impeccable balance to the sweetness of dessert. I’ll take my coffee with “cream” brûlée!
Cocktail: Brown Sugar Espresso Martini
Tasting Notes: sweet, nutty, & bitter
♦ 1 part FOU-DRÉ
♦ 1/2 part espresso
♦ Pecan infused cream
♦ Brown sugar cube
♦ Garnish with a candied pecan in a martini glass
The Holiday Cocktail
FOU-DRÉ Spiked Mulled Wine
The holidays are full of warmth and joy so it goes to reason that holiday cocktails should be too. This classic winter drink is brought into the new millennium with FOU-DRÉ’s trademark pomegranate infused vodka. Made with pinot noir, spicy notes of clove, and a cinnamon stick garnish, Chef Jones-Drake’ spiked mulled wine warms the cockles of your heart one sip at a time.
Tasting Notes: spicy, earthy, warm, & fruity
♦ 1 bottle red wine (preferably pinot noir)
♦ 1 cup pomegranate juice
♦ 5 cloves
♦ 1-2 cinnamon sticks
♦ 3-4 orange slices
♦ 1/4 cup sugar
♦ 1 cup FOU-DRÉ (add to the finished punch)
♦ Garnish with pomegranate seeds and cinnamon stick in an Irish coffee mug
Check out ELYSIAN’s Instagram page for an exclusive opportunity to win your very own bottle of FOU-DRÉ for the holiday season!
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