To some people, the holiday season means cookies and family… but to others, the countdown to Christmas involves indulging in festive cocktails.
Luckily for us, Pittsburgh doesn’t shy away from this tradition. Bars across the city have put their festive foot forward when it comes to winter drinks, and are currently serving drinks with berry, pine, cinnamon, and lots of warmed rum.
Below is preview of different Pittsburgh bars currently serving seasonally inspired drinks. From classic flavors like orange, to unique ingredients like poppy seed milk, there’s a drink for everyone this winter. Cheers!
Hidden Harbor
There’s always something new and intriguing on the Hidden Harbor menu, and this winter is no exception. Already this season Hidden Harbor has been serving a “1941 Hot Zombie,” a hot rum beverage with lime, passion fruit, honey, maraschino, pineapple, allspice, bitters, and Jamaican and Demerara rums. This drink is served piping hot in a double-walled glass mug, topped with a star anise-topped butter pat. More seasonal drinks are on the way, so keep an eye on their Instagram.
Hidden Harbor is currently hosting month-long fundraiser to support hurricane relief in Puerto Rico. The bar has teamed up with Puerto Rican-born chef Jamilka Borges of Spoon in East Liberty, and her mother chef Jenny Muñiz of San Juan, Puerto Rico. $1 from every drink sold in December will be donated to El Buen Samaritano (The Good Samaritan). This program was started by Muñiz, and provides on-the-ground meal service efforts in Puerto Rico in the wakes of Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
Mixtape
Mixtape, located on Penn Ave in Garfield, is famous for their menu of innovative and seasonal drinks. For the winter, the bar hunted down some fun, seasonal spirits, including a stone pine liqueur, as well as a sweet potato vodka.
From their list of housemade ingredients, guests should lookout for ginger-tonic syrup, fresh clementine juice, ginger-molasses falernum, spiced sweet-potato puree, coconut whipped cream, and beautiful star-anise ice cubes. Mixtape’s aim for the winter menu was to capture the warmth of the season while still shaking it up with refreshing winter cocktails. As always, the drinks have fun names like, “Posh Spice,” and “Alpine Blast.”
Mixtape tries keep all of their signature cocktails under $10. This, combined with the fact that the bar has a no-tip policy, makes Mixtape’s winter menu one of the best deals in town.
The Commoner
The Commoner got Pittsburgh in a tizz this November when they announced they would be serving “Grinch-inspired” cocktail menu this holiday season.
Guests can now stop into the bar and order from their How The Grinch Stole Christmas cocktail menu. The menu includes five themed drinks, and features ingredients like charred grapefruit vodka, malted hot chocolate, boozy marshmallows, and vanilla-cardamom reduction.
A few drinks to look out for are the “Jury Duty, Jury Duty, Black Mail, Pink Slip, Eviction Letter, Jury Duty…” with Grand Marnier Cuvée 1880-Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream, and the “Who Steals a Christmas Tree?” with Angostura Marshmallow.
Apteka
Run, don’t walk, to Apteka. There are some extra-special drinks on the bar’s winter menu that you don’t want to miss. The restaurant is cracking open many of their preservation projects and housemade cordials from the past few years. Guests would be amiss to visit the restaurant and not try Apteka’s 2015 wiśniówka, a sour cherry liqueur, or their 2016 orzechówka, a black walnut liqueur.
There is also a new gin drink on the cocktail menu made with housemade pear nectar and topped with dehydrated hop flowers. Other cocktail ingredients guests can expect to see include homemade poppy seed milk, and spruce tip syrup, made by the Apteka team this past spring.
Scratch Food & Beverage
If you haven’t made the trek up Troy Hill to Scratch Food & Beverage, now is the perfect time! The restaurant’s acclaimed bar program has carefully crafted several drinks for the winter season . Typically, Scratch’s cocktail program features a balance of classic and signature drinks. On the classic side, guests can expect old-school favorites they may have not seen in years.
On the signature side, the bar lets their creativity shine. Moving into this winter, Scratch will be serving a “hot buttered rum,” drink, as well as a rum and porter flip – a colonial drink made with a whole egg.
Spork
With a drink program run by Pittsburgh cocktail legend Sean D. Enright, you know you’re in good hands at Spork. This season, the popular Garfield eatery has some very special drinks up their sleeve.
The restaurant is already serving their winter cocktail menu, so don’t waste any time heading over there to try these drinks. The names alone could make you tipsy.
To warm up, order a “Hot Buttered Sazerac,” with cognac, fennel butter, and peychaud’s bitters. If you’re a tea person, don’t miss the “Herbalist’s Vice,” a drink with rye whiskey, chamomile, and cynar 70. Finally, “The Violet Hour” features rum, ginger, and a beet shrub with a very vibrant red color, sure to get get anyone in the holiday spirit!
Station
If you’re craving items like butterkin squash, calamari bolognese, and apple salad, you better head to Station in Bloomfield. Their current food menu is brimming with comforting winter foods. And, while you’re there, be sure to order a cocktail or two (or three).
Station takes the “craft” in “craft cocktail” very seriously. And, just like their food, their current cocktail menu has various winter flavors on display. One drink to lookout for is “The Velvetine,” made with cocoa nib infused Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon, spiced pear juice, Averna Amaro, and Fee Brothers Aztec Chocolate bitters.
The bar was kind enough to share the recipe below, or you can stop in to enjoy one paired with something from Station’s appetizer menu.
The Velvatine:
- 1.5 oz. cocoa nib infused Four Roses Small Batch Bourbon
- 1 oz. spiced pear juice
- 0.5 oz. Averna Amaro
- 2 dash Fee Brothers Aztec Chocolate bitters
Allegheny Wine Mixer
The Allegheny Wine Mixer – perched on Butler Street in Upper Lawrenceville – feels like everyone’s neighborhood wine bar. If you’re ever looking to try a glass of something completely unique, look no further than this funky bar.
Phenomenal wine selection aside, the bar also has an impressive cocktail list. Many of their drinks incorporate wine into a classic cocktails. And, with temperatures dropping, The Allegheny Wine Mixer is turning up the heat serving many boozy hot drinks.
One of the bar’s favorites is Swedish Punsch, which is both a Scandinavian liqueur and beverage. The liqueur itself is often homemade, combining Batavia Arrack, lemon, tea, cardamom and sugar. On Thursdays it’s traditional to drink hot Swedish Punsch with pea soup.
The bar was kind to share their recipe for Swedish Punsch below, or you can stop by to enjoy a glass on one of their plush sofas!
Single serving:
- 2 oz Swedish Punsch (recipe below)
- 1 oz dry Riesling (a dry one helps cut the sweetness of the punch)
- Place in serving vessel and fill with hot water
- Grate nutmeg on top
Recipe for Swedish Punsch (Underhill Punsch):
- 2 Smith and Cross Navy Strength Rum
- 1 cup Batavia Arrack, which is a rum like liquor from Indonesia
- 2 cups strong black tea
- 2 lemons thinly sliced
- 2 cups Demerara sugar
- 1 tsp cardamom.
- Let sit overnight and strain.
- It is possible to buy commercial versions of Swedish Punsch, the most common being Kronan.
Worth a mention:
Pittsburgh can’t get enough Miracle on Market, a holiday pop up bar located in The Original Oyster House. The bar is completely decked out in decorations and serves an entire menu of holiday cocktails. Miracle is now open through New Year’s Eve, but be warned – the bar’s popularity means it’s often crowded, and you may have to wait to get in.
If you’re looking for a fun activity for the family, Zone 28 on Freeport road in Harmer has bowling, arcade games… and a holiday fish bowl drink. The drink includes gin, sours, pineapple juice, rosemary, cranberries, a candy cane, and coconut snow.
The Butterjoint in Oakland is known for their ever-changing list of drinks every season, and has the New Pope on the menu right now, with Reposado, Applejack, Antica Carpano, Benedictine and cinnamon that’s perfect for colder weather.
Maggie’s Farm Rum in The Strip has already been mixing up some their famous Egg Nog this season, as well as a special cocktail with dark rum, coffee liqueur, orgeat, dark chocolate, and hazelnut, topped with real whipped cream and crushed peppermint.
Head to the bar Wednesday – Sunday to see if you can score a glass of these decadent drinks.
What are you drinking this holiday season? Let us know your favorite winter drinks – at bars, or at home – in the comments below!
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