Winterized Cocktails. / Photo by: Emily Hawkes / Food styling: Judy Haubert / Props: Ashleigh Sarbone
There’s a reason that so many bars roll out new cocktail menus each season: Drinks that feel so refreshing all summer long can hit a little differently on chilly nights. But instead of tossing out cocktails, savvy bar pros simply adjust recipes to create winter drinks with different ingredients, flavors and formats.
What appeals about this approach, says Ryan Lotz, beverage director and partner at Shore Leave, a tropical-themed bar in Boston, is that rather than switching to super-austere drinks, like an Old Fashioned, this gives the option to keep more easy-drinking options in the rotation.
Plus, “you can feel like you’re embracing the change of seasons in a very tangible way,” he says. “These drinks can almost act like a bridge to the next season—not that they cannot stand on their own all winter long.”
