Cold weather calls for a booze blanket, that happy drank that keeps you warm in the winter. Invite your pals and cozy up with a nip from your perfectly stocked bar. But not just any nip. Get on some next-level home bar offerings with these easy infusions, each provided by a local expert. We infused our booze in Crucial Detail’s sleek-AF portholes ($99 each), which you may have seen at The Aviary, but we won’t judge you for using canning jars (specific sizes are provided for each recipe).
Our experts also made brand suggestions for booze and select ingredients, but we encourage you to find spirits that work for your taste buds and budget. After all, you’ll be adding plenty of character with these unique recipes.
Umami Bomb bloody mary
Never buy pre-made bloody mary mix again with this savory infusion by Rodrick Markus, owner of Rare Tea Cellar (3701 N. Ravenswood Ave. 773-561-3000). Just top it off with tomato juice.
1 32-ounce canning jar
1/4 cup ma-kombu seaweed
4 garlic cloves
4 cooked bacon strips
1 cup whole almonds
24 baby yellow tomatoes, whole
2 jalapeno peppers, halved
1 750-milliliter bottle of vodka (Markus recommends Boyd & Blair 151 proof)
Tomato juice for mixing
Combine all ingredients (except tomato juice) in jar and infuse for two days to one week. Enjoy with tomato juice to taste.
Mulled wine
Perfecting mulled wine is a winter essential, and who better to teach us than wine-savvy Enoch Shully, owner and beverage director of Bin 36 (161 N. Jefferson St. 312-995-6560)? While this one can be done with a jarring technique, it’s much quicker to make it on the stove, Shully said.
6 star anise seeds
1/8 cup whole cloves
1/8 cup pink peppercorns
1/8 cup coriander seeds
5 cinnamon sticks
3 medium blood orange peels
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 bottle red wine of your choice
1/2 cup apple brandy (Shully recommends Laird & Company)
Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan over low heat. Bring to a simmer (do not allow the wine to boil), until the sugar has dissolved. If desired, strain the spices from the wine by pouring it through a fine-mesh sieve or a colander before serving.
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Dark Matter Coffee bourbon liqueur
Your morning brew won’t be the same without this syrupy bourbon recipe dreamed up by Heather Schroering, highlighting local Dark Matter Coffee (various locations, darkmattercoffee.com).
1 32-ounce canning jar
1/2 cup Dark Matter Coffee beans
1 whole vanilla bean
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 cinnamon stick
2 whole cloves (optional)
1 750-milliliter bottle of bourbon
Coarsely grind coffee beans in a grinder or by hand with a mallet in a clean linen dish towel. Add to jar. With a paring knife, split vanilla bean lengthwise. Scrape the seeds into the jar, followed by the empty pod. Combine remaining ingredients in jar, cap and let sit for up to three weeks. Shake every few days, and taste after a week and a half until it reaches your desired flavor. (Letting it sit for longer will yield a stronger coffee flavor.) Strain infusion through a sieve (some sediment may remain) and enjoy in coffee and cocktails or straight.
Spiced cherries
Add a warm touch to a classic manhattan with these spiced cherries, adapted from a recipe provided by The Broken Shaker (19 E. Ohio St. 312-940-3699).
1 8-ounce canning jar
1 medium cinnamon stick
1/2 teaspoon cloves, whole
1/2 teaspoon allspice berries, whole
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, ground
1 cup high-proof vodka
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup fresh cherries, pitted
Grind all spices in a spice grinder (a coffee grinder works just as well). Combine with vodka in a jar, seal tightly and infuse for 24 hours. Strain mixture through a fine sieve. Pack cherries in jar with sugar and add spiced vodka. Let marinate for at least a week before use.
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