Tess’s Christmas tip
Anyone who thinks Tess Posthumus spends the entire Christmas shaking cocktails for family and friends is mistaken. Her tip? “Make the oven dish of cocktails: punch!”
“Punch is ideal for Christmas. You can use up everything in it that you received in bottles over the past year but otherwise wouldn’t drink yourself, and you can make it in advance. Just put it on the table, add a ladle and everyone can help themselves. No fussing over shaking and garnishing cocktails for each person. Surely the idea isn’t that you spend all your time toiling away in the kitchen? This way, you can sit at the table and enjoy yourself too. That’s what Christmas is all about to me.”
Tess’s tip? This winter tinto de verano, or this Winter Berry Punch:
Multiply the quantities by the number of people.
- 45 ml spiced gin
- 45 ml organic cranberry juice
- 10 ml red vermouth
- 10 ml fresh lemon juice
- 10 ml winter syrup (recipe follows)
- garnish: slice of dried orange, cinnamon stick and freshly grated nutmeg.
Pour the gin, cranberry juice, red vermouth, lemon juice and homemade winter syrup into a punch bowl with ice cubes. Garnish each glass with a slice of dried orange, a cinnamon stick and some freshly grated nutmeg on top.
Winter syrup
- 300 g granulated sugar
- 150 ml water
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 3 cloves
- 1 star anise
- 5 black peppercorns
- 1 slice of fresh ginger
- zest of 1 orange.
Put everything in a saucepan and heat over low heat. Let the sugar dissolve and make sure it does not come to a boil. Allow the syrup to cool completely once all the sugar crystals have dissolved. Once cooled, strain out the spices and store in a clean glass bottle in the refrigerator for up to three months.
