20 Cocktails Guaranteed To Warm You Up This Winter

Cocktails can be great to take the edge off after a long day or give liquid courage on a first date. But when stopping for a drink on a cold January evening, it’s possible we just want to be warm.

Frosty margaritas and sangria have their place during the warmer months, but as the weather chills, these cocktails promise to heat things up.

 Trader Vic’s Coffee Grog

At Trader Vic’s at London Hilton on Park Lane in London, the Trader Vic’s Coffee Grog is made with freshly brewed coffee, Tilambic Overproof Rum, Grand Marnier, double cream, coconut cream, orange and lemon peel and cinnamon stick for garnish. The deliciously warm and boozy drink is served in a fun Trader Vic’s headhunter mug. “The Coffee Grog is one of the original Trader Vic’s after dinner libations and experiences unprecedented popularity levels during the winter months, both in the bar and restaurant. The inclusion of overproof rum certainly helps temper any potential spikes in energy that the caffeine hit delivers (suggested by the choice of mug – also original) so it’s best enjoyed in small doses!” said OJ, head barman at Trader Vic's at London Hilton on Park Lane.

Pumpkin Spiced Hot Toddy

At DiAnoia's Eatery in Pittsburgh, a take on a classic bourbon toddy, using Angel's Envy Bourbon, Maggie's Farm Pumpkin Spice Coffee LIqueur, ginger honey syrup, and hot water served in a teacup. "This is a fun combination with another revered classic, the toddy! Featuring local ingredients and housemade flavors, Maggie's Farm Pumpkin Spice is distilled right up the road and a necessity for all bars in the fall, truly a brilliant liqueur.  We combine this with our house-made ginger honey syrup which has a bitey spice from freshly juiced ginger that is sure to warm you right up! Plus, you look like you're drinking tea, so we think it's acceptable morning, afternoon and night,” said Heather Perkins, general manager.

Seasonal Antidepressant 

At Josephine in Nashville, this cocktail is made with Plantation 3 Star Rum, Cap Corse Blanc Vermouth, Demerara, Angostura Bitters stirred, and served in a chilled neat glass with a Smith and Cross Rum rinse, and a lemon expression. "With this cocktail, I wanted to create something that lit you up inside while it was cold outside, but also reminds you of warmer days. Rum is typically a summer spirit, but it has the ability to make a boozy stirred drink. The light, refreshing flavors in the blanc vermouth are bright along with the white rum, the angostura balances any sweetness, and the Smith and Cross rinse at 114 proof gives it a hot caramel kick to warm you up the moment it hits your lips. The name speaks for itself, while this cold weather might get you down, this drink is sure to pick you back up!"said Kelly Gable, bar manager.

Nicky's Italian Hot Chocolate

With Braulio Italian Alpine Liqueur, this cocktail at Nicky's Coal Fired in Nashville is naturally sweetened with the addition of brown butter, cardamom, and melted dark chocolate. Top with whipped cream or serve the liqueur as a floater!  “We love this warming cocktail as an after-dinner treat. We incorporate Italian spirits into all of our drinks, and Braulio is a unique and delicious pairing with chocolate that our customers can't seem to get enough of!” said Caroline Galzin, owner.

Coyote's Tail 

At Butchertown Hall in Nashville, this cocktail is made with Wild Turkey Rye, Montelobos Mezcal, and lime. "The Coyote's Tail off our new winter cocktail menu combines rye and mezcal for a boozy, smokey punch that's sure to warm you up. The additional of Allspice Dram gives the cocktail a light spice to finish,” said Dan King, director of operations.

Kentucky Bloom

At The Listening Room in Nashville, this drink is made with bourbon, ginger beer, Cardamaro, citrus shrub and Peychaud's Bitters. "Our Kentucky Bloom is the perfect cocktail to tie you over from winter to spring. A bourbon base get your blood flowing, while a flavor profile of ginger and citrus creates the perfect combination of sour and spice." said Chris Blair, owner and pitmaster.

One-Armed Man

At Encima (upstairs at The Franklin Mortgage & Investment Company), a speakeasy-style bar in Philadelphia, the One-Armed Man draws influence from Szechuan cuisine with its bright, herbal, and spice flavor profile. It combines a little sweetness from pineapple and ginger, a little smoke from mezcal, and layers of complexity from Yellow Chartreuse, a house-made five-spice tincture, another house-made Szechuan peppercorns tincture for the cuisine’s signature tongue-buzzy background, and garnished with fresh chili oil for a heated spicy pop. “The One-Armed Man is a combination of several of my favorite things. I love Szechuan cuisine for the layers, depth, and balance of flavor and this cocktail is designed to represent that interplay of warmth, sweet, spicy, earthy, and herbaceous,” said Mike Reisman, bartender at Encima.

French Press Hot Toddy

At Croton Reservoir Tavern in New York City, Croton's French Press Hot Toddy will take the chill out of guests looking for a warm, flavorful cocktail. Guests press bourbon with fragrant cloves, allspice, honey syrup, and orange and lemon peels with warm water "Croton is known for our well-crafted, classic cocktails and the French Press Hot Toddy is our take on a winter favorite," said bar director Rodrigo Escobal.  "Presenting it in a French Press engages the customer, and they get the added experience of smelling the aromatic spices as the drink comes together."

Spiced Hot Toddy

“Autumn and the holiday season are my favorite times of year - the smells, the flavors, the festivities. I love to make hot drinks for my family and friends during this time and I think our Spiced Hot Toddy is the ideal drink to warm you up. I like to use New York Distilling Company’s Applejack Finished Ragtime Rye, an allspice dram and some cinnamon to put a twist on the classic hot toddy. The Applejack finish is very versatile, with a slight hint of apple that compliments the cinnamon flavor perfectly,” said Marissa Mazzotta, bar manager at The Shanty in Brooklyn, New York.

Hot Teddy

Created by Amir Babayoff for Ophelia in New York City, this Hot Toddy spinoff is a delicious combination of Barrell Whiskey, Pineau De Charente, lemon juice, Island syrup, Angostura Bitters and ginger/orange spiced tea all topped off with hot water. The spicy tea and temperature of the cocktail will be sure to warm you up in more ways than one! "At Ophelia I wanted to create a Hot Toddy that has a strong base and is both masculine and feminine in order to fit the concept and create a balance that appeals to both men and women. I chose an exceptional bourbon, Barrell Craft Spirits, with deep flavor layering that was aged in high quality casks without chill filtration, coloring or flavoring and at barrel strength. The addition of Pineau des Charentes (fortified wine from France) brings out the softer part of the drink with the resulting notes of peaches, prunes, plums and toasted nuts. The tea blend I used in order to spice things up is an organic, caffeine free blend of exotic herbs and cinnamon spice notes tangled up with sweet bursts of orange. For a sweetner, I wanted something deeper and more fitting for the complex flavor profile of the drink so I added Panella (unrefined sugar cane) with a blend of 5 winter spices (cinnamon, cloves, allspice, nutmeg, cardamom) and that really magnifies the experience and makes this cocktail perfect for winter!"  said Amir Babayoff, head bartender at Ophelia.

Matcha Gracias

The Matcha Gracias at Añejo in New York City will warm you from head to toe with its spicy, Mexican ingredients. This mixture of Union Mezcal, Ancho Reyes, St. Germain, and matcha chile honey will keep you keep you warm inside all winter long. "With health and wellness being a huge trend, naturally so is matcha with its antioxidants and detoxifying properties. What hooked me was it’s earthy flavor that happens to pair extremely well with the earthy notes of Mezcal. Where most cocktail menus are adding a whisper of matcha to a cocktail to stay on trend, I’ve created a cocktail that really embraces the matcha as well as the mezcal. Our Matcha Gracias cocktail has a unique balanced flavor for the winter combining matcha and mezcal while bringing in traditional tea notions such as honey and lemon,” said DJ Brown, general manager at Añejo NYC.

Mexitella

The Mexitella is Aqimero at The Ritz-Carlton in Philadelphia is a riff on a traditional carajillo. Made with traditional ingredients like espresso and Licor 43, a sweet vanilla-citrus liqueur, Aqimero puts a spin on their cocktail by adding Patron Select Barrel Reposado and a housemade Mexitella paste that includes sweet flavors like vanilla and hazelnut as well a spicy kick from cayenne and chili powder. The Mexitella is garnish with an expressed orange peel and a pepper and cocoa dust blend.  "The Mexitella is a perfect mix between sweet and spicy and a great way to warm yourself up in the cold winter months. The blend of pepper powders and espresso provide a kick of heat that is mellowed by the sweet vanilla liquor and hazelnut flavors,” siad Cera Fairhurst, beverage manager .

El Sancho

At MADRE in Brooklyn, New York, this drink is made with Vida Mezcal, apricot, Campari, habanero, and cinnamon. There’s no better way to warm up from the cold than with a cocktail that really brings the heat,” said Jason Kahn, head bartender at MADRE. “Our “El Sancho” cocktail features three different warming elements, starting with a smoky Mezcal, spicy habanero, and a finishing touch of cinnamon that adds a warm autumnal touch to the cocktail. We also include apricot and Campari to balance the heat with a touch of sweetness and bitterness.”

Spiced Cinnamon Cider

At Tavern on the Green in New York City, this drink is made with warm apple cider and house-made cinnamon whiskey. “To add some extra warmth to our hot cocktail, we infuse our whiskey in-house with cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg to bring a perfectly balanced spice to the cider,” said Jordan Tannenbaum, beverage director at Tavern on the Green in New York City’s Central Park. “Winter in New York can get cold, but our Spiced Cinnamon Cider is the perfect cocktail to warm up with after a chilly day in the park.” 

Djarum Major

At Watershed Kitchen + Bar in Columbus, Ohio, Josh Gandee, beverage director, makes a cocktail with Watershed Apple Brandy, Rye, Benedictine, clove bitters and chicory coffee syrup. Hints of bright red and golden apple blend with spicy Rye and subtle honey of the Benedictine to create a warming old fashioned. Finished with chicory coffee syrup and clove, these two flavors bind everything together for a classic that can carry you through winter. Perfect for a rainy day with vinyl or a snowy night and a good book. “When I was in college I was studying English, and at the time I was reading Oscar Wilde. This cocktail is inspired by the chilly walks I would take from my dorm room to the library and the clove cigarettes I carried to make me more interesting. If I could have packed this into a travel mug instead of hot chocolate (because I hadn’t learned to love coffee yet) then I would have,” said Gandee.

Haut Coco

At MR. COCO, a luxury cocktail lounge tucked away in the Fantasy Tower of Palms Casino Resort, thick and luscious Dutch cacao meets turmeric, ginger, goji and other superfood ingredients in an ambrosial blend of Green Chartreuse and Grand Marnier. It’s then served hot with Chantilly whipped cream.​ "This cocktail is an enveloping experience for the palate as the herbaceous Green Chartreuse meets the Bigarade Orange flavors of Grand Marnier. It's a wonderful winter soul-warmer," said Francesco LaFranconi, creator of MR. COCO Cocktail Lounge.

Lost In Translation

At Taiko Cuisine & Bar at the Conservatorium Hotel in Amsterdam, this drink is sweet and bubbly with hints of smoke and tropical fruit. “The Lost in Translation cocktail was based on the movie of the same name, highlighting the unusual friendship between Bill Murray’s character and Scarlet Johansson in the same way we paired Japanese Whisky and Spanish Cava to create an out of the ordinary experience that somehow beautifully comes together and warms you up at the same time,” said bartender Terrence Bhiekharie.

Bottin Mondain

At Green Bar at Hotel Café Royal in London, this is Courvoisier Cognac mixed with chocolate bitter, oat biscuit syrup and fig liqueur: the perfect combination for a wintery taste in your palate finished with a scent of red spruce essence on top. “The perfect antidote to cold winter nights, one sip of this sweet and spicy drink and you’ll feel a lovely warm feeling in body and soul,” said bartender Oscar Angeloni.

Campfire-tini

At The Lodge at Smith Point in Alton Bay, New Hampshire – Lakes Region, the Campfire-tini is a martini crafted from Casamigos Mezcal, Borghetti Di Verro Caffe’ espresso liqueur, fresh espresso and fresh zest of orange. “The campfire-tini warms ya’ up on a cold night or cools you down after a rough day at work, a cure for whatever ails,” said bartender Jason Gurnari.

Apple Chai Toddy

At ChopHouse Grille in Exton, Pennsylvania, warm chai infused apple cider and Bulleit Bourbon garnished with Star Anise and orange. "Even if it was served cold, this cocktail would warm you up from the inside with Chai spices of cinnamon, ginger, clove and cardamom shining alongside the apple cider. But, it is served hot and, of course, the Bulleit Bourbon definitely will help keep you warm," said Jeff Thistle, general manager of ChopHouse Grille.

The Smoking Carriage

At Old Hickory Steakhouse inside Gaylord National Resort in Washington, DC, this cocktail is made with Dictador 12 year old brandy, cherry bitters, sugar syrup and smoke. The cocktail is served inside of a hickory box that is smoked. Once the cocktails is made, it is placed into the box, hickory wood chips are put into a smoker and the smoke is piped into the box to steep. “A riff on the ultimate classic “Old Fashioned”, this stunning cocktail features Dictator 12 year old Rum with honeysuckle and toffee notes paired with Remy Martin VSOP, smoked cherry bitters and caramel simple syrup—all finished table side with hickory smoke piped into box to steep. Guests love watching the creation of this cocktail, once they open the box, a cloud of smoke begins to slowly escape. The brandy itself warms you up but the smoke adds an additional element of warmth along with the scent of hickory, reminiscent of a nostalgic winter bonfire,” said Gaylord National Resort beverage director Justin Castle.