Holiday Drinks Make the Holiday Season Enjoyable

Get festive at your next gathering with some holiday favorites.

One of the very best parts of the holidays is the food and drink that seems to be everywhere at once! It seems like once Halloween is over, everywhere you go has food and drink to celebrate the holidays. Whether or not you like it, the holidays are a very caloric time!  Everyone knows about fruitcake, pumpkin pie, peppermint sticks and the other highly traditional holiday fare.  However there are also a lot of great holiday related drinks that are enjoyable and are easy to make at home.  Whether you are hosting a large gathering or just having a few friends over, it is always a good idea to consider what sorts of drinks you can serve over the holidays.  Luckily there are many options for children and adults alike, who may be interested in trying something delicious and new.

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Egg Nog is the old standard traditional drink and can be enjoyed with alcohol or without.  While not everyone loves eggnog, making a cup of eggnog and adding a shot of espresso is a great way to wake up this old favorite, and enjoy the taste of cream and nutmeg while getting a little bit of a caffeine fix, too.  Egg nog is traditionally made with brandy but you can sub in whiskey or some other sort of liqueur  to cut the sweetness of the mixture and make things a little stronger.

Another delicious and traditional holiday drink is Irish Coffee.  This excellent winter warmer contains coffee, Irish whiskey and sugar. It is obviously not for children but for adults it is an excellent winter warmer that's just perfect for after dinner or with dessert during the cold months of the holiday season.  You can make it with any sort of coffee that you want to and top it with any whiskey that you have in the house. If you are serving it with dessert, whipped cream can make a nice final topping for your Irish coffee.

Another traditional holiday drink that can be dressed up several different ways is hot chocolate.  No matter what your taste is, hot chocolate is one of the most delicious and enduring traditional drinks of the winter holiday season.  You can make it with a mix, you can make it from actual melted chocolate, or with the kind of syrup that is often used in chocolate milk.  For an extra kick, sprinkle some cayenne pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg in with the chocolate before you add the liquid.  Many people use hot water for their hot chocolate, but for a truly effortless, creamy taste, you will need to be sure that you are using milk.  Skim milk or soy milk are fine substitutes as well.   This is another drink that can be improved or at least amended with the addition of coffee.  For those of us who truly enjoy coffee in all of our beverages, adding a shot of espresso, or just some traditional coffee is a great way to liven up the coffee and make it more of a mocha drink. 

Another holiday favorite is mulled wine.  Heavy with spices, warm and fragrant, mulled wine that has been simmering for a while is an delicious and tangy way to enjoy the holidays. You can buy mulled wine at a store, or simply make it at home by adding spices and seasoning and heating it over a low flame.

Along the same lines is, of course, champagne.  New Year's Eve just wouldn't be the same without a bottle of champagne to toast with, and most other holiday gatherings feature a similarly wonderful toast at midnight to celebrate the holiday. 

Happy Holidays!

About the Author

Kara is a writer and avid blogger. She actively writes about gift giving, food, and even coffee accessories for a coffee blog.