Designated Drinker: Egg Nog

Don't your guests deserve better than boxed nog?

(Note: With the Holidays around the corner, I thought this would be the time to share our resident bar expert’s Egg Nog recipe.  I am surprised that more restaurants do not server this during the holiday.  It is a easy sell and does more to put people in the holiday spirit than that tired old Bing Crosby album.  You can find Paige’s cocktails and many other great entertaining ideas in every issue of Tastebud Magazine. )

Once again the time of warm fires, white snows, pungent pines, and cherished memories enters our calendars. As we bring in the holidays our favorite traditions are upon us and we, whether knowingly or unknowingly, journey through the American holiday season.

December is quite the month; hosting Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanza, and New Year’s Eve it is jam packed full of elated emotions. With all of the holidays, it is as if we ignore the overall season. Yet, some seasonal beverage traditions shine through, beverage traditions such as eggnog.

As one eggnog tale tells, the Colonial treat was served as nog’n’grog only to later lose its ‘gr’ component creating our modern eggnog. In Canada the drink is referred to as  “lait de poule”, translation: hens milk. Further lore tells of a medieval wooden alcoholic beverage serving container dubbed the ‘noggin’. While it is hard to trace the complete origins of the drink, the charm of the delectable treat remains.

At the bar I work at, the bartenders handcraft many beverages including seasonal favorites such as our alcoholic eggnog, the nog’n’grog. A typical recipe of eggnog calls for egg yolk, cream, nutmeg and sugar; a recipe once thought extravagant as the every day Colonial American did not drink milk or have ready access to eggs. Though the non-alcoholic blend is tasty, a touch of spirit will create the soothing effect one looks for in a holiday brew.

A simple solution to adding spices is to add a touch of spiced rum and let the cordial’s spice open up. Alas, Captain Morgan, Goslings, and Pyrat bring a blend of spices indigenous to the Caribbean Islands. The amber color of the spiced rums come from the aging process the rums undergo in oak barrels. The year-long adventure allows for the spirit to absorb the barrel’s unique flavor as well as absorb the barrel’s brown hue. A pirate’s love becomes more clear as the flavorful spirit awakens add the spicy blend necessary to hearten up the groggy nog.

While brandy is a traditional ingredient, Tuaca accentuates the spicy medley by adding a vanilla and citrus blend. In fact, Tuaca is an excellent example of an alcohol that incorporates many different aspects; it is a combination of brandy with vanilla and orange accents. By adding Tuaca the sip is warmed with the rum and brandy and heightened with the orange and vanilla twist. The overall concoction is a creamy elixir that will calm even the most exhausted holiday shopper.

The beauty of eggnog is its versatility. Not only is it appropriate for the religious holidays, it too finds is tasty home during the New Year’s Eve festivities. One can bring in the New Year while sipping on a traditional treat with an alcoholic touch. As the traditional chorus sings, “we will take a cup or kindness yet, for old long ago”. To the winter season we raise our cup of kindness yet and remember the beverage of old long ago.

Recipe:

¾ Oz Spiced Rum

¾ Oz Tuaca

1 Oz Cream

1 Egg Yolk

¼ Oz Simple Syrup

Dash of Cinnamon

Dash of Ground Clove

Shake vigorously unltil blended well.  Serve in a martini glass with a dash of nutmeg for a garnish.

Previous recipes from the Designated Drinker:

Introducing: The Designated Drinker

Designated Drinker: Harry’s Bar Bellini