The 5 Best Winter Cocktails for Chilly Nights

They say there’s no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing. Bad weather, however, also requires good drinks. Below are five delicious cocktails that will help you make it through the darkest of winters—and maybe even inspire some experimentation. All are riffs on familiar favorites you’ll know and love, but each with a unique seasonal twist that’ll have you savoring the crisp winter air, rather than longing for sweaty summer days. 

I’m starting with an Old Fashioned because it’s my favorite of the bunch. If you want a wonderful fireplace experience in a sweet and fortifying cocktail, this is it.

Combine Woodford Reserve Double Oaked, maple syrup, 2-3 dashes of Angostura bitters, and brown sugar (or brown sugar syrup) and stir. Add ice (an ice ball is preferred) and stir again for 3 seconds.

Smoke with Smokeshow Smoker (20-30 seconds) using their applewood “Smoke Dust” (see Smokeshow instructions). Finish with a wide slice of orange peel—twisted over the cocktail to express the oils and rubbed along the rim of the glass before adding—and 1-2 Luxardo cherries.

If you’ve been outside in the snow, the Ilegal Mezcal spicy hot chocolate is the perfect cocktail for warming up. This is also one of those cocktails that you can make as spicy as you want. Below is a modified version of Ilegal’s recipe.

Combine water, milk, chocolate, hot chocolate mix, and all ground spices in a saucepan. Warm over low heat to a simmer and stir until chocolate melts.

To each mug, add Ilegal Mezcal Joven, chili liqueur, agave nectar, and bitters. Divide the chocolate mixture between the mugs and stir. Garnish with a cinnamon stick.

A regular cosmopolitan is good during the winter, but if you want to make it feel especially seasonal, here’s one to fill that hole left by snowless Decembers.

Combine all liquid ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake for 30 seconds. Strain into glass. Garnish with cranberries and rosemary.

Tart cranberries are a classic winter flavor. Add them to a gin sour and you have a wonderful seasonal cocktail that is colorful, frothy, and festive. 

Combine gin, cranberry simple syrup or juice, lemon juice, and the egg white or aquafaba. 

Dry shake for 15 seconds. Add ice and shake again for at least 15 seconds. Strain into your glass of choice. Add a few dashes of Angostura bitters, then garnish with cranberries.

Margaritas are one of those drinks you can endlessly customize. Add in oranges and some seasonal flavors on the rim, and you’ve got a refreshing winter cocktail.

Combine tequila, orange juice, lime juice, Cointreau or triple sec, and agave syrup. Shake and filter into glass over ice. Rim the glass with either a mix of turbinado sugar and cinnamon, or salt.