Surely we can’t have any holiday without a little cheer. Sometimes that cheer comes in the form of gifts and food, but in this case, we are talking about cheer in alcohol form. L’Chaim!

The Naughty and Nice list

1. Sazerac Cocktail
2. No You Can’t Substitute with Egg-Beaters Eggnog Martini
3. Kir Royale
4. Peppermint Snowball
5. Santa’s Little Helper
6. Mulled Wine
7. Holiday Punch
8. Oy! Chanukah!

Sazerac Cocktail
1 cube sugar
1½ ounces (35ml) Sazerac Rye Whiskey or Buffalo Trace Bourbon
¼ ounce Herbsaint (using absinthe instead is pretty cool)
3 dashes Peychaud's Bitters
Lemon peel

• Pack an Old-Fashioned glass with ice
• In a second Old-Fashioned glass place the sugar cube and add the Peychaud's Bitters to it,
  then crush the sugar cube
• Add the Sazerac Rye Whiskey or Buffalo Trace Bourbon to the second glass containing the
  Peychaud's Bitters and sugar
• Empty the ice from the first glass and coat the glass with the Herbsaint, then discard the
  remaining Herbsaint
• Empty the whiskey/bitters/sugar mixture from the second glass into the first glass and garnish
  with lemon peel

No You Can’t Substitute with Egg-Beaters Eggnog Martini
1 ounce spiced rum, something like Captain Morgan's.
1 1/2 ounces dark rum, your favorite brand will do.
1/2 ounce vanilla vodka
3 ounces of eggnog - either homemade or store bought depending on how much time you have.
1/4 ounce plain syrup
Crushed graham crackers
Honey

• Mix the dark rum, spiced rum, and vodka in a martini shaker. Add ice.
• Add in the eggnog and a dash of syrup.
• Dip the rim of a chilled martini glass in honey, then into the graham crackers.
• Shake, strain, then pour into the chilled martini glass.
• Optional: garnish by adding a cinnamon stick, or a small amount of powdered cinnamon to the
  top of the drink.

Kir Royale
Cassis (1-2 tablespoons or 15-30 ml)
Champagne (about 6 ounces or 150 ml)
Slice of orange peel

• Place Champagne flutes in the freezer for 15 minutes. Remove and add 1-2 tablespoons of the
  Cassis to each flute.
• Fill each flute to the top with Champagne and serve immediately. Add a
  slice of orange peel (or raspberries)
• If the Cassis is added first, it is evenly mixed with the champagne. If the champagne is added first, the
  Cassis is not evenly mixed (due to the smaller volume of Cassis relative to the Champagne). The
  former approach gives a more even taste and is preferable from that perspective whereas the latter
  approach gives a more pleasing appearance with the uneven mixing of the Cassis resulting in a fine
  pink at the bottom of the glass shading up to a bright red at the top.

The Peppermint Snowball
1 oz Absolut Vanilla
½ oz of Jameson Irish Whiskey
½ oz of Rumplemintz
½ oz of Kahlua French Vanilla
½ oz of Butterscotch
1 oz Half & Half Cream
½ teaspoon of Sugar

• Garnish with whipped topping, ground cinnamon & cinnamon stick.
• Be sure to place the garnishof whipped topping into the glass first. Then, after the ingredients are shaken, pour into the martini glass around the whipped topping so it floats to the top.

Santa’s Little Helper
Make your own candy cane by creating white or red cosmopolitans
1 cup white or red-cranberry juice
4 ounces vodka
2 ounces Cointreau

• Fill a cocktail shaker with ice.
• Add cranberry juice, vodka, and Cointreau.
• Shake to combine
  well.
• Strain into two large martini glasses. Serve immediately.

Mulled Wine
1 large orange
2 cardamom pods
6 whole clove
6 allspice berries
6 whole black peppercorns
1 cinnamon stick, plus 4 for garnish (optional)
1 bottle (3 cups) fruity red wine
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brandy

• With a fine grater, zest, then juice the orange.
• With the flat side of a knife, press firmly on the cardamom pods to bruise them. In a large pot
  (not aluminum), combine zest, juice, cardamom, cloves, allspice, peppercorns, cinnamon, wine,
  sugar, and brandy.
• Cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar dissolves, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Reduce heat to low; simmer until flavors have melded, about 30 minutes. Pour through a finemesh
  sieve; garnish with cinnamon stick, if desired. Serve immediately.

Holiday Citrus Punch
2 cups bottled pear nectar
4 cups orange juice
2 cups chilled club soda
1 cup light rum (if desired)
Orange slices (for garnish)

• Set a fine-mesh sieve over a large pitcher or punch bowl
• Pour 2 cups bottled pear nectar and 4 cups orange juice (from blood oranges or regular juice oranges) through sieve into pitcher.
• Before serving, stir in 2 cups chilled club soda and, if desired, 1 cup light rum.
• Pour into glasses over ice; garnish with orange slices.

Oy! Chanukah!
1 glass of Manischewitz

• Serve at room temperature.

This article is part of JewishBoston.com's Brief Guide To Christmas For The Perplexed! Download the entire guide or find the other articles in our blog section.