16 hours Ago By [email protected] (Bobby Lewis)
A thick, creamy eggnog is a hearty holiday classic, made all the more enjoyable with a healthy helping of liquor. Gary Mennie is the food and beverage director at The Mills House , a historic luxury hotel and local landmark in Charleston, South Carolina. He lent his expertise exclusively to Daily Meal to discuss the perfect ratio for crafting a spiked eggnog.
According to Mennie, the golden ratio for adding liquor to eggnog is two parts eggnog, one part liquor. If making your own eggnog, Mennie says that it should be stored cold in an airtight container, and will remain drinkable for two to four days — but, he added, "the more alcohol you add to your eggnog, the longer it lasts!" As far as which liquor to add, Mennie has three go-tos: Bourbon, dark rum, and cognac. Dark liquors like these are preferable to add to eggnog because of their deeper, more complex flavors.
Brandy is also a traditional choice for eggnog. Skip the clear liquors with eggnog which tend to have flavors that are not as complementary to the rich and creamy drink. Great eggnog cocktails with delicious dark liquors As Gary Mennie's golden ratio suggests, spiking an eggnog can be as simple as dumping half a bottle of dark rum into a pitcher of store-bought nog.
Or you can craft a more sophisticated cocktail to make the most of the seasonal flavors. To make use of bourbon, try mixing up an old fashioned eggnog , which combines the holiday treat with the classic whiskey cocktail. For a more luxurious take on this, swap the bourbon for cognac.
If you're working with dark rum, add some to this coquito-ish eggnog recipe , for a boozy holiday twist on the classic Puerto Rican drink. Bourbon would also work, but Puerto Rico is world-renowned for its rum, a spirit which is often included in both eggnog and coquito recipes. No need to fix what isn't broken.
No matter your preferred liquor, another expert tip to remember when mixing eggnog is that you don't have to buy from the top shelf. The dominant flavors of eggnog will silence a high end liquor's more sophisticated flavor notes, so there's no need to pay top shelf prices. Just stick with the 2-to-1 eggnog-to-alcohol ratio and you're ready for some festive cheer.
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