So So Gay
For anyone who hasn’t had stepped outside for the past week, January is here and it’s brought wind, rain and plummeting temperatures. Here at So So Gay we’ve decided that the perfect tonic to the weather is to throw a cozy soirée with a few friends and turn that heating up.
There are many drinks to choose from but we feel the best ones are made with love and care, meaning shaken or stirred cocktails are on the cards. If you don’t want to be stuck in the kitchen doing your best Tom-Cruise-in-Cocktail impression then hire in a company like Cocktail Nights to do it all for you. Here are some drink ideas from us to get you started, just remember to drink responsibly – you don’t want to end up more drunk than your guests.
French 75
25ml No.3 gin
25ml Freshly squeezed lemon juice
10ml Monin Gomme syrup
Champagne
1 Grignotine cherry or lemon peel
Mix the gin, lemon juice and syrup in a cocktail shaker. Pour the contents into a champagne flute and top up with champagne. Garnish with a grignotine cherry or lemon peel.
TOTAL Egg Nog (for those wanting to hang on to the festive spirit)
Pint milk
5 Egg yolks
50g Caster sugar
1 Vanilla pod
300g TOTAL 2% Greek Yoghurt
50ml Brandy
Freshly grated nutmeg for garnish
In a medium saucepan heat the milk with the seeds of the vanilla pod. In separate bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar until creamy. Add the boiled milk to the egg mixture and return to a moderate heat, stirring continuously with a wooden spoon. Heat and stir until the mixture thickens slightly (just enough to coat the back of a spoon). Remove from the heat and place into a new bowl. Allow to cool before covering the bowl and refrigerating until the eggnog has cooled. 2 minutes prior to serving, mix in the yoghurt and brandy, and ladle the mixture into glasses. Garnish each glass with a sprinkling of ground nutmeg.
Stoli Spiced Pear Martini
75ml Stolichnaya Premium vodka
50ml Fresh pear juice
1 Lime, squeezed
1 Teaspoon nutmeg
Core and peel a ripe pear liquidising until smooth in a blender. Pour the pear juice into a shaker with the Stolichnaya Premium vodka. Squeeze in the juice of one lime and shake. Serve in a martini glass and sprinkle over the nutmeg. Garnish with a slice of lime
Bollinger Special Cuvée
For something a bit simpler, but still delicious and popular with guests, pour Bollinger into a glass and relax. With Absolutely Fabulous back on our screens this Xmas and New Year, nothing will go down better than this Ab Fab champers. Available for Waitrose, Harrods, Selfridges, Sainsbury’s, The Wine Society RRP £42
And for the morning after…
Radish Bloody Mary (Serves 4)
100ml Vodka
50ml Sherry
½ Tablespoon freshly grated horseradish
25ml Worcestershire sauce
Tabasco to taste
½ Teaspoon celery salt
Cracked black pepper to taste
750ml Tomato juice
100g Sliced radishes
1 Lime cut into wedges
500g Ice cubes
4 Celery sticks to garnish
Mix together the vodka, sherry, horseradish, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, celery salt, black pepper and tomato juice in a large jug. Fill another large jug with the ice, sliced radishes and lime wedges. Pour the liquid over the ice, and serve straight away in chilled glasses with celery sticks in them. Alternatively you can let your friends mix their own, depending on how spicy they like them!
