Cocktails to Beat the January Blues

January might just be the most daunting month of the year, with its bad weather and post-holiday blues.

And if Dry January turned out to be a flop (that isn’t to say we don’t also have a great non-alcoholic gem for you)we’re bringing you some small ways to add a little excitement to your day by way of simple yet delicious concoctions to experiment with this month.

We can’t promise that a sip of one of these will solve all your seasonal depression woes, but they might cheer you up for a minute or two.

VIVIR CAFE VS

Nothing screams a pick me up more than an Espresso Martini and the newly launched VIVIR Café VS is perfect for people looking to make a classic Espresso Martini cocktail from home ! VIVIR Café VS is made using VIVIR Tequila Blanco and is naturally flavoured with coffee beans sourced locally to the distillery in Jalisco, Mexico. The liquid boasts a rich coffee flavour that is met with a sweetness from the unrefined Mexican sugar Piloncillo followed by an elegant agave finish lending itself perfectly to the Espresso Martini cocktail!

VIVIR Espresso Martini

30ml VIVIR Tequila Blanco | 20ml Vivir Café VS | 50 ml Fresh Espresso | 10ml Agave Syrup | Pinch of Salt

Combine all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake until cold. Strain into a chilled martini glass. Garnish with a couple of roasted beans.

Price £34.95 |Available to purchase from Master of Malt

Everleaf Forest

The original Everleaf; Forest is an intricate blend of 14 bittersweet botanicals including sweet orange blossom and Madagascan vanilla, bitter gentian and golden saffron, earthy vetiver, and spicy cassia bark, inspired by forest layers, from the canopy to the understory.

This complex and bittersweet beauty is best served in The Forest Spritz:

One-part Everleaf Forest and three parts light tonic, garnished with a wedge of orange and served over ice – sunshine in a glass!

Price £18 | 50cl |Available via Marks & Spencer and www.everleafdrinks.com

VIVIR

If you’re a fan of the whisky notes and looking to experiment with ingredients the VIVIR Anejo is the ideal gateway spirit into the agave category. It’s bold enough so that it can be enjoyed neat as though sipping a whisky. It has been aged for eighteen months which adds yet more depth to the colour and flavour profile. The smoky American Oak barrel evolves the liquid into a darker caramel tone and gives it gentle woody notes which are met with a rich creamy mouthfeel. VIVIR’s Bramble provides warm dark berry notes and is the perfect cocktail to enjoy with friends during the gloomy nights.

VIVIR Bramble

50ml VIVIR Anejo | 30ml Fresh Lemon Juice | 1tbsp Agave Syrup | 1tbsp Blackberry Liqueur

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice, and add VIVIR Anejo, lemon juice and agave. Shake until well-chilled. Fill a small tumbler with crushed ice and pour over the shaken mixture. Drizzle the Crème de mûre over the top so that it ‘bleeds’ down into the glass. Garnish with your blackberries and sprig of rosemary for the aromas.

Price £39.95 | Available to purchase via Master of Malt

Bloody Cow

For a savoury palette we recommend trying Black Cow’s Bloody Cow.Black Cow is the only vodka made entirely from whey from grass-grazed cow’s milk left over from the cheese-making process, producing an exceptionally smooth vodka with a unique creamy character. The deliciously smooth Black Cow vodka brings its own take on the classic Bloody Mary with Bloody Cow! Bloody Cow is an ingenious interpretation of the classic Bloody Mary with an added touch of warmth from a hit of Sherry and a splash of Tabasco adding an extra kick to every sip!

Bloody Cow

Mix the ingredients and serve in a highball glass over ice. Garnish with a pickled chilli. Spread the celery salt roughly around the rim (as pictured).

Price: £38.99 | Available to purchase from Black Cow’s website |

The Bottle Cocktail Shop | Homeboy

For those of us who want a quick and easy fix we recommend trying one of these professionally bottled cocktails from The Bottle Cocktail Shop. The wide range of cocktails include the classic favourites, Gin Martini, Margra-rita Ora, Session Negroni, Old Fashioned and Vodka Martini, perfect for having bar standard drinks at home. The bottled Cocktail Shop is an online store selling delicious handcrafted no-fuss cocktails with 9 original recipes designed to wow cocktail lovers!

This new independent launch comes from the award-winning team behind cocktail bars Homeboy Islington and Embassy Gardens who wanted to break down barriers and make drinking world-class cocktails at home more accessible.

Price £25 for a 500ml bottle | Available to purchase from www.thebottlecocktailshop.com | @thebottlecocktailshop

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