[tcb-script src=”https://app.involve.me/embed”][/tcb-script]
They say that a person who ages beautifully is just like “fine wine.” What does that mean? It means that the more a liquor is left to mature, the tastier it becomes and, by default, the more expensive. Quality equals a stellar price; this is how it’s always been. So, what exactly does the most expensive liquor in the world contain in order to justify the insane amount of money the acquiring of a mere single bottle requires?
As we dive deeper into the cold season, it’s time to swap ice cream and frappes for warm soups and delicious hot chocolate. But if you’ve been a hot chocolate junkie for a while, you’re starting to grow bored of the same “pour cocoa, pour hot milk, and stir” routine. Don’t worry, this is the Internet, which means that here lie countless of creative, unique, and downright sinful recipe ideas that can help you give a twist to your cup of precious molten delight.
Without further ado, let’s discover the most awe-inducing hot chocolate recipes – ideal for those days off when all you need to do is watch reruns and snuggle under the blanket.
Let’s start off with a simple yet effective twist: if you don’t know how else to enrich a recipe, make it boozy! Chocolate and bourbon go together almost as well as chocolate and rum. Throw a black cherry into the mix and you’ll get the same kind of flavor that makes boozy black cherry chocolates so incredibly sophisticated and popular.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
Sometimes all it takes to really give a unique twist to a drink is one particular ingredient. In this case, our star is peppermint, an unmistakable festive scent and flavor. Just like the pumpkin spice can do wonders for the ever-so-popular PSL, peppermint is going to give your hot chocolate a new edge – a Christmas-y edge.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
If sprinkling some peppermint over your hot chocolate’s whipped cream just isn’t quirky enough for you, dare to experiment and completely rewrite your own definition of hot chocolate. This recipe is a reinterpretation of hot chocolate from base to flavors, swapping the traditional dark cocoa for its lesser used white counterpart. The real spiciness and exotic edge of this beverage, however, is given by the peculiar yet astounding lemongrass-lavender combo.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
We’ll continue with the white chocolate propaganda because, dang it, it deserves some love too. In fact, many fail to realize the possibilities that come with white chocolate and its mild flavor, which is a perfect foundation to build all kinds of crazy flavor combinations. For example, take this combination. Cardamom and orange meet in your cup to create this recipe, which can be enjoyed on Christmas Eve and an average February night alike.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
Some say that there’s nothing that doesn’t go well with chocolate. We argue that coffee goes best of all. The popularity of the divine beverage typically known as mocha should serve as proof of that. If you love your coffee and cocoa alike, don’t make the mistake of missing out on this zesty recipe. It’s as classic as it easy to prepare (don’t let the ingredient list intimidate you) and make your own.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
Pink, cute, and delicious – this is a hot chocolate that basically begs to be part of a Valentine’s Day table. Even without this kind of special occasion, would anyone’s life be poorer while sipping on a strawberry hot chocolate? No? Of course not. Enrich your life and learn how to prepare this beverage, reserved only for those seeking supreme relaxation.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
You know you’re fighting a losing battle when you see fudge AND Oreo in the same sentence. For something that sounds so incredibly fancy, it’s actually incredibly easy to prepare it. Don’t believe us? Just take a look at the ingredient list below.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
You will never have to leave the comfort of your home to seek out cafes that can prepare this taste bud-soothing beverage once you learn how to prepare it at home. Caramel is great. Caramel with chocolate is even better. Salted caramel and hot chocolate should just be downright illegal.
YOU WILL NEED:
Read the recipe here for instructions!
And here we are, at the end of this journey (which really tested our resilience). Which one of these hot chocolate wonders made you crave it more? It doesn’t even matter. It’s hot chocolate, meaning that you can prepare it with minimal resources and effort. Get those cups ready!
Someone taking a sip from an alcoholic drink for the first time may be turned off by the strength or bitterness of said drink. Usually, it’s not a pretty experience. This is why we should get rid of it by only recommending the best tasting alcoholic drinks.
Whiskey, wine, beer, or vodka aren’t exactly the most recommended alcoholic beverages to experiment with for the first time around. Anyone who’s ever tried alcohol knows that the burning sensation down the throat can definitely turn someone away. Let’s not even mention the relatively dry and morose taste. So, what’s there to be done? Blow a mind away by offering them some drinks with a stellar taste. No one will ever be able to say that alcohol tastes dull. Here are what we believe to be the best tasting alcoholic drinks.
Yes, we did say that whiskey is one of the drinks we strongly recommend against for first-time drinkers. But this is Baileys, an Irish cream kind of whiskey with a velvety and sweet taste like no other. The beverage can even act out as a desert, which is why some might not even believe it’s actually alcohol.
Generally speaking, cocktails are definitely recommended. You don’t just get the rawness of alcohol in its pure form. You get a delicious blend with fruity, perfumed, and sweet flavors. This Martini hybrid is no different. It’s easier on first-time drinkers than a regular Martini thanks to the infusion with apple liquor.
Beer can be pretty bitter and unpleasant tasting. So, if you want to take your first sip and fear getting turned away before you get the chance to get used to it, try Radler. It kicked off a trend of lemonade-mixed beer and, let us tell you, it definitely cuts off the typical taste of beer.
Sangria is a beloved Spanish-originated beverage and one of the best tasting alcoholic drinks in the world (in our humble opinion). The best part, however, doesn’t come from the taste of the liquor itself but from the incredible combination it makes with fruits. People serve sangria with apples, grapes, oranges, peaches, and others.
There may not be a better way of stepping into the world of alcoholic beverages. Apple cider is mild, perfumed, and flavorful. You won’t even know it’s alcohol that you’re drinking. What’s more, this drink also has variety. You can find still and sparkling versions and if you end up disliking the boozy part of it, you can opt for a non-alcoholic version.
These Amaretto Sours are particularly popular with ladies, but that doesn’t mean you can’t hit up the bartender and order some if you’re a gentleman. They’re extremely flavorful, but also happen to pack a considerable alcohol level. Just don’t let the taste carry you away because you’ll end up downing one Amaretto after another and this is all bound to end with a throbbing headache.
Okay, so Shnapps may not exactly be extremely welcoming to the throats of first-time drinkers. This beverage contains approximately 42% alcohol levels so its strength might be a bit of a turn off. However, it wholly makes up for it with its incredible fruity flavor. Shnapps may be strong, but it’s one of the best tasting alcoholic drinks in the world. You can find them in flavors such as cherry, apple, orange, and peach.
Pimm’s is very similar to sangria, in the sense that it’s a beverage best served with a side of flavorful fruits. The main difference is that it’s a gin-based brown nectar. Also just like sangria, it tastes wonderfully on its own, so no matter how you serve it, you’ll love it.
What we’ve learned today is that skeptics may be swayed into really enjoying their first boozy sip as long as they try one of the best tasting alcoholic drinks in the world. And we’ll let in on a secret: people who are long time drinkers will enjoy them too.
You can take virtually anything and make it impossibly expensive if you really put your mind to it, but there are some things are just supposed to be expensive. Otherwise it’s a little bit weird, isn’t it? When we talk about scotch whiskey, for example, we immediately associate quality with the price tag attached to the bottle. It’s just how things work. But there’s one thing to go to the grocery store and acquire the most expensive scotch on those shelves and it’s a completely different thing to sell your house, your car, your family, and a kidney.
Why would you do that, you say? Us Average Joes would kind of have to do it in order to get our hands on the most expensive scotch whiskies in the world.
The Macallan distillery is famous worldwide and it manages to produce plenty of assortments of scotch that are known to make your pockets a lot lighter. It’s also famed for producing the world’s third best-selling single bat, behind Glenfiddich and Glenlivet. This vintage liquor is sold online in exchange for an average price of $32,000.
This type of scotch is the result of a blend of two other types of whisky. They’re just any type of whisky either, as they are all aged prior to the mix in American casks. The really amazing thing about this beverage is that its value as one of the most expensive scotch types is increased by its uniqueness. Every bottle is manually crafted and numbered.
The name for this scotch references “the titan who holds the moon” and it makes for a really fascinating story revolving around this type of whisky. According to the creators, sunlight burns, but moonlight just illuminates. Needless to say, the taste is absolutely amazing, rich in fruity undertones.
This 50 year old alcoholic delight is one of the finest selling point of the Balvenie distillery, which has been around the market since the late 19th century. It comes as a given that the taste of the scotch is so good it’s almost revolting, but it’s bottling is just as impressive. Its wooden case is crafted with 49 rings made from different breeds of wood.
When it was first put up for retail while being sold in the USA, a bottle of this kind was sold for as little as $80, but the price really went up alongside reputation. As a fun fact, Daniel Craig can be seen sipping scotch from a Macallan 1928 bottle in the movie Skyfall.
Everybody loves a good story and the story of this really expensive scotch is that only twelve bottles were ever produced of this kind. Each one of them was given a distinct name and Matheson, the one that’s giving this enormous value to the batch, was named after Dalmore’s owner.
Fine and rare, indeed. Macallan struck again with this bottle, which was worth $35,000 to begin with. But this stellar price was acquired when a Korean businessman decided to double the price during an auction. As expected, the news circled the Earth.
We know we’ve used the word “unique” several times, but this expensive scotch really takes the meaning to a whole new level. In its composition, this sprite uses a blend of some incredibly rare whiskies which date back to as far as the 19th century. As a result, only three bottles were fabricated.
Believe it or not, yes, someone purchased a bottle of scotch for nearly half a million of dollars. To their defense, it is a Macallan and it also helps that the content itself is a mix of three extremely old types of whiskey. The bottle is a definite bonus, as the crystal container was created specifically to hold this amber liquor in.
There’s no surprise that Macallan takes the top spot too. This uniquely-crafted expensive scotch was sold off for over half a million of dollars at a 2014 auction in Hong Kong, marking the spiciest price anyone was ever willing to pay for a whiskey bottle. Speaking of bottles, this one was the result of the intense work of 17 craftsmen which worked 50 hours each in order to reach perfection.
Four days away from Christmas, people are already tuning into the Winter Holiday mood. Which is great, because the more jolly people around, the less of the usual drama that takes place during the rest of the year (yes, including during the commute home when traffic brings out the best and most sincere parts of people to the surface…).
So, in order to help this feel good and friendly vibe on its way, I’ve wrapped up a few drinks that are perfect for this time of year. I mean, hey, what’s more guaranteed to make someone jolly, giddy and red in the cheeks than a sip of a good beverage fit for the occasion?
So, without further a due, here’s 6 winter holiday drinks that you should consider for the upcoming get-together and parties with your friends and loved ones.
Ah, the traditional warmer of the Northern peoples. And not only, as evidence suggests it was prepared all over the world in ancient times and might even be “the ancestor of all fermented drinks,” according to Maguelonne Toussaint-Samat.
It is indeed a drink that results from the fermentation of honey and water. A great variety of spices can be added according to taste (cinnamon, star anise, cloves, etc.) as well as extra honey. Heat it up and serve it with good companions for a warm reception.
Another classic. Just grab some red wine, add spices and sugar and heat it up.
Depending on how sweet or dry the wine is, you’ll have to greatly adjust the quantity of sugar you add to the wine. Taste it from time to time.
As regards the spices, these may vary. Feel free to experiment and find out what you like. However, you can’t go wrong with cinnamon, as it’s a staple of mulled wine. And has been so throughout the ages and cultures.
Near the Winter Holiday, each year, most breweries put out their Christmas Brew. This is usually special in some way. Either because it is based on a recipe which is more “exotic” than the year-long offerings. Or because (oddly enough and in a blatant show of consumer disregard the rest of the time), the quality of the beer is noticeably higher.
Not to mention that there is a limited number of such beers produced each year, so there’s also the element of scarcity that makes them interesting.
There are many offers available. Just look out for the Christmas Brew of your favorite brewery. Chances are, they make one. And if your family members or buddies are also beer drinkers, it will make for a welcome change.
Perfect mix. And mega-warm-up-er. Make any kind of white or black hot chocolate (sweet, bitter, your choice), and then give its warmth factor a few extra miles by adding a good dose of brandy.
Now you probably shouldn’t add so much that it becomes brandy with a touch of chocolate. Just enough to make the brandy noticeable and add its pleasant roughness to the chocolate’s sweetness.
It takes just about 5-10 minutes to prepare. And you need just brown sugar, pumpkin, pumpkin pie spice, butter, rum and water.
You mix the first three in a blender. Put the result in a cup, add the butter and rum and then pour hot water on top. Presto! A great beverage to keep you warm with an exquisite and intriguing flavor to boot. Not to mention the creaminess.
That’s right. There’s nothing like whiskey to keep you energized (and gasping for air as you deal with its strength). I’m talking of course about the traditional, single malt variety. And of high quality brands with decades of tradition.
If you haven’t let yourself sip an excellent single malt whiskey by the fireplace, you don’t know what you’re missing. Try buying a 12 year old (or better still an 18 year old!) Glenfiddich, Glenlivet, Glenmorangie, hell pretty much anything that has Glen in it (kidding).
It might sound simple because “it’s just whiskey in a glass”, right? But don’t be deceived. These world class whiskeys have tons of flavor and personality. Featuring varied smell, taste and after taste. To give just one intriguing example, if you buy a Lagavulin, most reviewers agree that you can taste a campfire in it – it’s that smokey.
But I guess you’ll have to decide for yourself. Just don’t, by God, put ice, water or anything else in it. Keep it straight. And you’ll be amazed how complex and satisfying it can be.
Cheers! And a happy Winter Holiday!
Image source: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
