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Brighten up New Year’s with burnt orange punch
“What’s cool about punch is that you’ve got something already prepared to give guests, which frees you up to be with them instead of mixing drinks,” he says. Not only can you make punch ahead of time, punch can also be cheaper than buying bottles of wine or enough spirits to make a variety of drinks.
Punch, which predates the cocktail, was originally made with rum or brandy mixed with citrus juice, tea or spices and was a communal drink at taverns, Alan says. “Instead of ordering a drink at a bar, you walked in and had whatever they were drinking.”
And forget the overly sweet church potluck punch. Skip the sherbet and its cooling properties, Alan says, and instead use an old Jell-O mold or silicon Bundt pan to freeze a block of ice. A big piece of ice is better than smaller pieces because it will melt more slowly.
Also, starting in February, Alan and Boxcar Bar cocktail consultant Lara Nixon are teaching a 12-week course that will cover topics including cocktail horticulture, history, spirits and even molecular mixology. You can take the whole course ($350, $250 for U.S. Bartenders’ Guild members) or individual classes ($35 per class, $25 for members). Alan says registration for the class begins Jan. 1.
Championship Punch
Alan created this burnt orange punch just in time for New Year’s Eve and a certain national championship football game that will be taking place on Jan. 7.
3 or 4 tangerines, Meyer lemons, oranges or lemons
1/2 cup demerara sugar (or white sugar)
6 oz. strong green tea, warm
24 oz. (about one 750 ml. bottle) Flor de Cañ a 4-year Aged Rum (or other aged rum, such as Mount Gay or the Texas-made Railean )
6 oz. fresh squeezed tangerine juice
6 oz. fresh squeezed Meyer lemon juice
6-8 dashes Angostura bitters
1 oz. St. Elizabeth’s Allspice Dram (available at the Austin Wine Merchant and fine liquor stores)
Over a punch bowl or glass pitcher, remove the zests of several tangerines, Meyer lemons, oranges or lemons. Be careful to remove only the outer zest and not the white pith, which is bitter. Leave the zests in the bowl and add sugar and warm green tea. Stir to dissolve sugar and allow to steep a few minutes.
Add rum, fruit juices, bitters and allspice dram. Strain mixture into a punch bowl. Add a large block of ice, which you can make by freezing water in a Jell-O mold, Bundt pan or half of a paper milk carton. Makes about a dozen 4-oz. servings.
—David Alan, TipsyTexan.com
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