Do you need a little Christmas spirit? And would you care to have said spirit served over ice or in a festive cocktail?
You’re in luck. Following in the footsteps of craft beer’s seasonal offerings, liquor producers are rolling out limited edition releases aimed at making spirits bright this holiday season.
Anchor Distilling Co. in San Francisco hits the trend from both the beer and spirits side. Sister company Anchor Brewing releases an annual Christmas Ale, holding back some of that beer which is then distilled and sold the following year as a white whiskey under the catchy label of Spirit of Christmas Past.
First released in 2013, the spirit changes each year because Anchor’s Christmas Ale uses a different recipe each year, says head distiller Bruce Joseph. He recommends trying it in an old fashioned for an “old fashioned white Christmas.”
Though year’s end traditionally is a time of brown spirits, gin is on track seasonally with its juniper notes. The Edinburgh Gin Distillery has taken that characteristic a bit further, distilling their Edinburgh’s Christmas Gin with frankincense and myrrh. They recommend serving it in a classic gin and tonic or in a Negroni.
Other possibilities include Jack Daniel’s Winter Jack, which combines Old No. 7 Tennessee Whiskey with apple cider liqueur and holiday spices. It’s best served warm. Pinnacle, the vodka of many flavors, has a peppermint bark edition out, and Kahlua has pumpkin spice and peppermint mocha versions.
Cleveland Whiskey, which has made waves with its rapid aging process using chopped up barrels in pressurized tanks, has a Christmas Bourbon. Founder and chairman Tom Lix says he was inspired to make it after looking at all the different craft seasonal beers compared to the typical liquor offerings — generally limited to seasonal packaging or boxes including branded glassware.
For those times when only bubbles will do, Chandon has risen to the occasion with a Limited Edition Blanc de Noirs, which comes wrapped in white and gold labeling and is printed with sentiments such as “Life of the Party” and “Bestie Wishes.”
And if your thoughts are turning to a white Christmas consider High West Distillery &Saloon in Park City, Utah, billed as the world’s only ski-in gastro distillery. Located at the bottom of the Quittin’ Time run in Park City Mountain Resort, the distillery is in its third year of releasing A Midwinter Night’s Dram as a seasonal offering.
