Some Like It Hot - BarChick's Favourite Warm Cocktails

Proving that there's more to hot alcoholic drinks than mulled wine and Irish Coffee...

We've asked a few of London's hottest bartenders to come up with some winning warming winter warmers - that's warm, never boiling (you want the alcohol right?)…

BLAZERS

Any bartender worth his weight in arm-garters knows how to make a Blue Blazer. Created by hero and bartending legend Jerry Thomas, it is dangerous and probably best not tried at home. Flaming whisky is poured back and forth between two silver cups, forming a long blue arc of flame. Most bars do their own spin of the Blazer, and as long as it still involves plenty of fire, BarChick doesn't really care.

Bar legend Dre Masso serves up a traditional Blazer using Courvoisier, one sugar cube and Angostura bitters, served warm in a brandy balloon with zesty orange peel.

The boys at Roka in Canary Wharf add a spicy Japanese spin to their Blazer with plum sake, apple, cinnamon and big plump cherries, in our opinion it tastes best when drunk on their outdoor patio overlooking the ice skating rink.

Always known for taking it to the extremes, Artesian bar at the Langham Hotel lights Johnny Walker Black on fire, and serves it over hot lava stones with a crystallized sugar stick. Show offs. Eccentric gastro pub Paradise by Way of Kensal Green calls their Blazer 'Heavenly', and adds Chambord and fresh berries to make it that way. Sip on one in their angelic courtyard garden. HOT!

How to make your own Blue Blazer:

120ml of cask strength Scotch
120ml Boiling Water
1tsp Brown Sugar
Lemon Zest twist to garnish
2 Glass or metal tankards with handles

It's VERY important to be safe when making this cocktail. Drinking by the fireside is always dreamy, but not when the fire is your burning-down house. You'll wanna practise your free-pouring technique with cold water first, and make the real deal on a non-flammable floor with some fire-fighting equipment nearby (extinguisher, damp towel etc ) - JUST IN CASE!

Add the sugar, scotch and boiling water into one of your mugs, and carefully ignite with a match. Very carefully, pour the flaming liquid back and forth from mug to mug half a dozen times or so. The more foolhardy will increase the distance each time which will create a streaking blue flame between the two mugs... it looks cool, but don't attempt if you're nervous. Divide the drink evenly between the two mugs and extinguish the flames by placing the bottom of the alternate mug over the top. Garnish each mug with a lemon twist. BOOM!

^{Image: by George Condon via Facebook}

TODDYS, BUTTERED RUMS AND PUNCHES

BarChick's official man-flu cure is the classic hot toddy: a steamy mix of whisky, hot water, cloves, cinnamon, lemon juice and honey, but everyone has their own version, so each to their own, check ‘em out…

The American Bar has perfected the recipe with their Savoy Toddy: rum, fresh lime, Orgeat syrup, apple juice, cider and bitters, served warm with cinnamon. It's so good that it has even made its way into the latest edition of the world-famous Savoy Cocktail Book, BarChick's bedtime reading.

It’s over to Knights Bar at Simpson's In The Strand for their Winter Warmer; a velvety blend of warming apple brandy with a butter toffee sauce that will wrap you in a luxurious embrace. Been missing hugs during the pandemic? This is the next best thing.

In Mayfair? Feeling the cold? Forgot your cashmere? Make your way to the Maddox Club, who, having recently opened their doors to non-members, will greet you with open arms. Order the Never Summer - Hennessy VS Cognac, Mexican vanilla liqueur, French chestnut liqueur and bitters, it might just feel like home.

How to make your own Buttered Rum:

100ml rum
200ml water
25g butter
1 orange, zested and juiced
4 cloves
1 star anise
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 bay leaf
1 tsp maple syrup

Heat all the ingredients in a pan until hot but not boiling, while stirring. Let it sit for a few mins, then strain into a glass mug.

SPICY MULLED STYLE HOT DRINKS

Glögg, Glühwein, vin chaud, vin brulé…everyone seems to have their own name for this Christmas classic, but the idea is the same - warm some red wine or cider, add some spices along with other liquors and fruit. In Poland they even mull their beer!

Bermondsey St classic, The Garrison makes a Hot Spiced Cider with French Breton Cider and all those winter spices. Drink one in their super cosy basement cinema room on a Sunday evening when they hold their free weekly film club, Odeon who?

If you happen to find yourself out in Chiswick in a snowstorm, or not, then duck into the new-look Devonshire Arms, grab a hot date/paper, and get the seats by the fireplace, with their Spiced Brandy Cider, your Sunday session just got a little bit better.

In Chinatown and not feeling all that Sake, then sniff out the secretive Experimental Cocktail Club. They've got a delicious mulled cider style Winter Warmer, and in their true sexy French style it’s called - La Soupe du Clown; all Grand Marnier, Calvados, Benedictine, and spices. They also throw in a little butter for a creamy smoothness, ooh la la.

Too cold/tipsy to leave the house? Throwing a house party? Whatever the occasion our friend Alex Kammerling has the answer. His Ginseng based spirit Kamm & Sons is a BarChick favourite, so we got him to make a couple of hot drinks for us…