By Steve Faragher

We asked our friends to recommend some good cocktails for Christmas, and chef Tim Maddams came back with an encyclopedia (well, three). Squerryes had a recommendation for us, which we’ve tried and tested and found to be most agreeable, and we’ve offered up one of our own favourites…

1.

Gin-moncello

Tim writes: “OK, this is a flip – I normally make my own Limoncello as a drink for after supper whenever I have lemons and make say curd or whatever, I use the spent lemon husks, combined with sugar and gin and macerate for a day or two before filtering off for keeping in the freezer for as and when required. I often add extra bits, lemon grass or lemon verbena, scented geranium – that kind of thing.

This then, is a quick version with a few twists to bring it up to the mark required for a weekend heart starter.”

To make the syrup

2 sticks of fresh lemon grass, bashed thoroughly (or a bunch of lemon verbena if you have it)

Juice of 1 lemon, and two strips of the zest, pith removed

200g caster sugar

200g water

1 star anise

Simmer all together and leave to infuse for half an hour, strain and reserve for later use

2 shots of rough gin

1 shot super lemon syrup

½ shot fresh lemon juice

Shake over ice and pour into an iced glass, perhaps with a lemon grass straw…

Boom chakalaka!

2.

Whisky Macdonald – the McMaddams version….

2 measures of whisky (blended is fine here)

Measure of stones, green ginger wine

A good dash of Crabbies alcoholic ginger beer

A twist of orange peel

Ice

Tim writes: “This is my version and it’s a bit different to the classic, which is usually just equal quantities of whisky and ginger wine and is not iced.”

Place the whisky and the ginger wine and the orange zest in the shaker, shake over a lot of ice and strain out to a freshly iced tumbler that is garnished with a slice of ginger and a fresh twist of orange zest. Add a good dash of ginger beer…….

Serve it up!

3.

A Warm Dogs Nose

Tim writes again: “This is a rendition of a classic west country drink – scrumpy, laced with gin! – here I have lightly spiced the cider and warmed it to make it more seasonal and added the gin simply to dry it out a little!”

½ pt good scrumpy cider

A pinch of Jamaican allspice powder

A sliver of lemon zest, and another of orange

A pinch of ground cinnamon

2 shots of gin

A sprig of thyme

1 teaspoon of local honey

Warm the cider on the stove and add the all spice, honey and cinnamon. Remove form eth heat and add the gin, and the thyme, pour into a clay mug and serve! Ideal for outdoors by the bonfire!

4.

Squerryes Signature 1731 cocktail

To honour the year the Squerryes Estate was purchased by the Warde family, we have created a Squerryes Signature 1731 Cocktail – our take on a classic champagne cocktail, using Remy Martin 1738 (as close as we could get to 1731!)

Squerryes Signature 1731 Cocktail. (Served in a flute).
Method
-Add 1 brown sugar cube to the glass.
-Add 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters
-Add 25ml of Remy Martin 1738
-Top with 125ml of Squerryes Brut

5.
James’s Old Fashioned

A classic cocktail given a little twist by our team.

2 tsp granulated sugar

2 dashes Angostura bitters

1 measure cointreau

Some water

60ml decent Whisky

Splash of soda water

Serve with a twist of orange zest.

Put the sugar, bitters, cointreau and enough water to dissolve the sugar in to a small tumbler. Mix until the sugar dissolves. Fill your glass with ice and stir in the whisky. Add a splash of soda water if you like and mix. Garnish with the orange twist.