Lift a Glass to Holiday Drinks Gone By

This is a guest post by J.J. Harbster, head of the Science Reference Section, in which she chooses favorite holiday drinks from the Library’s mixology and culinary collections. It follows up on the equally marvelous piece by her colleague Alison Kelly in which she curated favorite cocktails from the Pre-Prohibition era. As always, drink responsibly and be cautious about imbibing the beverages of our ancestors: Times and tastes were different then!

Baltimore Egg Nogg

Love it or loathe it, eggnog originated in the U.S. and is a long-established winter holiday tradition. This recipe comes from the 1862 “How to Mix Drinks,” the first mixology book published in the U.S, by the “father of American mixology” Jerry Thomas. What makes the Baltimore “egg nogg” distinct from other eggnogs? The use of Madeira wine, a favorite of the Founding Fathers.

Jeter’s Hot Pot

The tradition of a Christmas hot pot is “a real starter for a Merry Day and a Merry Christmas,” wrote Freda DeKnight in her 1948 cookbook, “A Date with a Dish.” DeKnight traveled the U.S. collecting recipes from Black chefs, home cooks and caterers. This family recipe for a Hot Pot — a warm melding of spices, sugar, cream and spirits perfect for a cold winter morning or night — has been served on Christmas morning by three generations of Jeters in Caroline County, Virginia, and Philadelphia.

North Pole Cocktail

This “fancy drink” looks like a wintry wonderland but tastes like the tropics, and famed New York bartender Jacob Grohusko made his North Pole cocktail easy to concoct. The simple recipe of French vermouth and pineapple in a glass rimmed with powdered sugar was published in Grohusko’s classic work of mixology from 1910, “Jack’s Manual.”

Frosted Cocktail

Dashes and jiggers are not names of Santa’s reindeers, they are measurements of ingredients used in this frosted cocktail published in Tim Daly’s 1903 “Daly’s Bartenders’ Encyclopedia.” The cocktail glass rim is “frosted” with pulverized (powdered) sugar and filled with the perfect ratios of spirits, sugars and bitters. The recipe base calls for whiskey (bourbon is recommended). The use of Benedictine, an herbal liqueur, provides additional holiday spice flavors reminiscent of the winter season.

Flutemaginely

This drink is not only fun to say but also a “refreshing and pleasant beverage not generally known,” wrote Jesse Haney in his 1869 “Steward & Barkeeper’s Manual.” The recipe for this intriguing cider punch calls for the classic holiday spice nutmeg along with the warming properties of brandy. Punches are a popular beverage for holiday occasions and, according to Haney, are “…believe(d) to be the oldest of all made drinks.”

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