Skip to main content

How to make a festive cocktail like they do at an Irish castle

A holiday recipe from an age-old castle in the UK

By Mark Stock Dec 12, 2025 1:26 PM

Kilkea Winter Flame. — Kilkea Castle

The holidays are coming in fast and furious. So, instead of panicking and getting lost in online sales, embrace the moment. ‘Tis the season for barrel-aged beers, hearty roasts, and festive cocktail recipes.

Today, let’s travel to Europe, southwest of Dublin about 45 minutes by car. That’s where a top golf resort resides, an incredibly property in the fertile lands of Ireland. While we hope you can actually get there at some point, we can at least offer a taste from the storied property in drink form.

Recommended Videos

The recipe comes all the way from Kilkea Castle in Ireland. The structure dates back to the Medieval era and now houses a luxury hotel and restaurant. Read on for the details.

Kilkea Winter Flame

Equal parts sweet, sour, and spicy, this holiday cocktail has something for everybody.

Ingredients:

1.35 ounces mezcal
6/10 ounce Amaretto
1 ounce pineapple Juice
1/3 ounce fresh lime juice
2/3 ounce house spiced cinnamon syrup (or MONIN winter spice syrup)

Method:

Start with chilling your rock glass
Fill shaker with ice and add ingredients with pineapple juice on the end.
Shake vigorously for at least 10 seconds.
Strain into rock glass over ice.
Garnish with pineapple wedge, grated nutmeg for extra heat.
For a wow effect, add cinnamon stick lightly toasted with a blowtorch or long handled lighter.

Who knows, perhaps the cocktail will inspire a trip abroad. If so, be sure to check out our Ireland travel guide. After all, travel plans make for great New Year’s resolutions.

Mark Stock is a writer from Portland, Oregon. He fell into wine during the Recession and has been fixated on the stuff since… Read Full Bio

Classic London dry gins to add to your collection

Tanqueray

When many drinkers think about gin, they are likely to envision traditional London dry gin. That’s because, like the West Coast IPA when it comes to IPAs, the London dry gin is the standard for the spirit style.

While I love a nice glass of whiskey (or a whiskey-based cocktail), the summer months were made for the pine and botanical flavors of London dry gin. This juniper-forward version is also the perfect choice for cocktail enthusiasts (in drinks like the iconic G&T, Gin Gimlet, Negroni, and more) because of its piney, botanical flavor profile, which pairs perfectly with citrus and other summery flavors. Today, I’m going to take a deep dive into this popular gin variety.

Old Forester’s new bourbon is reaching char levels we can only dream about

Alcohol, Beverage, Liquor

Old Forester, the Louisville, Kentucky brand that bills itself as America’s first bottled bourbon, just released the newest entry in its 117 Series: Triple Char Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whisky.

The milestone here isn’t only the char — at least, not entirely. It’s also that Triple Char is the first Old Forester expression made entirely from whiskey distilled at the brand’s Main Street distillery.

Herradura is bringing back its 110-proof tequila, the strongest it’s ever made

Alcohol, Beverage, Tequila

How high in ABV can a mass-market tequila get? Herradura is looking to find out, with the return of Directo de Alambique, an unaged, still-strength expression bottled at 110 proof at Casa Herradura in Amatitán, Jalisco.

The tequila first appeared in 2012 as a small-batch experiment and developed a cult following among collectors before disappearing. The brand says the 2026 return comes after years of requests from drinkers hunting down old bottles.