HOT TODDIES are those drinks you get when you’re cold or when you have a cold,” says Keith Emms. “You want something strong, you want something hot, you want something a little bit spicy.”
His recipe, which he offers in both bourbon- and brandy-based iterations, ticks all the boxes.
INGREDIENTS
Serving: 1
- 1 1/2 ounces brandy or bourbon
- 3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice
- 1/4 ounce Hunt + Alpine Cardamom-Coriander Syrup (see Editor’s Note)
- 1/2 ounce ginger syrup (see Editor’s Note)
- Garnish: orange twist, cinnamon stick
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DIRECTIONS
Preheat a glass mug by filling it with hot water. Leave the water in for now and set it aside.
To prepare the drink, you’ll want a heat-conducting vessel that fits into a second container. Two metal mixing tins work great: fill the first with enough hot water that the second container floats in the water when placed inside the first.
Essentially, you are creating a small bain-marie to preheat the ingredients without diluting them.
Add the brandy or bourbon, lemon juice, cardamom-coriander syrup, and ginger syrup to your mixing tins and stir gently until heated through.
Empty the water from the preheated mug and immediately fill it with the heated cocktail. Top with 3 ounces hot water. Express the orange twist over the drink, and place the cinnamon stick.
EDITOR’S NOTE
- Cardamom-Coriander Syrup:
- 2 cinnamon sticks, broken up
- 1 1/2 teaspoons coriander seeds
- 1 tablespoon black cardamom pods (do not use green cardamom)
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 4 ounces high-proof rum
- 15 ounces hot water
- 3/4 cup fine granulated sugar
Preheat the oven to 230°C. Spread the cinnamon sticks, coriander seeds, and cardamom on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in the oven, tossing occasionally to prevent burning, until fragrant but not burned, about 8 minutes.
Combine the toasted spices, red pepper flakes, and rum in a blender, and blend on high speed until evenly ground, about 2 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a separate container, combine the hot water and sugar, and stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
Set aside. Using a coffee filter or multiple layers of cheesecloth, strain the spice and rum mixture into the sugar syrup. Stir to combine. Transfer to a clean, sealable bottle or container.
This syrup will keep, refrigerated, for 2 months. Shake thoroughly before using.
As a substitute for the cardamom-coriander syrup, Keith recommends using 1/4 ounce St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram and 1 teaspoon of rich simple syrup (2:1, sugar:water)
Ginger Syrup:
Simply combine equal parts (by weight) whole ginger, white sugar, and hot water into a blender container.
Cap the blender and turn on high until the mixture no longer has chunks of ginger, usually about 2 minutes.
Then strain the syrup of the remaining fibers with a fine strainer or colander (do not use a coffee filter, as the sugar will make it nearly impossible for the slurry to pass through the filter).
Keep the syrup bottled and chilled in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.