Your nose is stuffy, your throat feels sore, and you have a cough that just won’t go away. If these symptoms sound familiar, it’s likely that you’re suffering from a cold. The common cold can make you feel awful, but oftentimes, it’s not enough to keep you home from work or send you to the doctor’s office. Fortunately, there are ways to help alleviate cold symptoms with a warming alcoholic drink. If you could use a soothing pick-me-up, Columbia Distributing suggests five drinks that can help you feel a little better with alcohol for colds.
Hot Toddy
The hot toddy has been around for centuries, and for good reason. Besides being a warm and tasty cocktail, the hot toddy is known for its medicinal benefits. Most recipes combine whiskey, or bourbon, with hot water, a spoonful of honey and a slice of lemon. Then, the toddy is often spiced with cloves and cinnamon for even more warmth.
This concoction contains many ingredients that can help alleviate cold symptoms. For one, whiskey serves as a decongestant, helping thin mucus. It can also help you fall asleep if you’re feeling restless. Honey helps soothe sore, tender throats, while lemon works to decrease the strength of the cold thanks to its abundance of vitamin C.
Boozy Hot Chocolate
When you’re feeling a bit under the weather, there’s nothing better than a piping-hot cup of hot cocoa. And what’s even better is a warming cup of boozy hot chocolate. You probably know that chocolate contains natural caffeine, so consuming hot cocoa while you have a cold can give you an extra pep in your step. Adding in a touch of mint or peppermint liqueur can also help remedy your sore throat.
Pepper Ginger Cider
Apple cider is often touted as a seasonal beverage, although you may be able to find it at some locations year round. If you’re coming down with a cold in the autumn months, why not whip up a delicious cider-based beverage? Start by warming two parts apple cider in a sauce pan. Once it’s nice and hot, pull it off the stove and pour the cider into a mug or serving glass. Then, mix in one part bourbon, a bit of ginger liqueur and some lemon juice. Finish by garnishing the drink with fresh black pepper. Ginger contains anti-inflammatory properties to relieve a sore throat, while black pepper helps ease congestion.
The Hot Penicillin
With a name like “the hot penicillin,” this cocktail does wonders to alleviate common cold symptoms. It takes the warm, soothing ingredients of honey, lemon juice, and fresh ginger and merges them with a healthy dose of blended scotch. Simply simmer honey, sliced ginger and water in a saucepan, strain the solids through a sieve, return the mixture to the saucepan and add in the scotch and lemon juice. In addition to the medicinal benefits of honey, lemon, and ginger, the scotch whiskey helps you feel less plugged up.
Hot Buttered Rum
Taking advantage of the deep flavor in dark rum, this cocktail is not only delicious – it can also help alleviate the symptoms of the common cold. To make hot buttered rum, start by beating together butter, dark-brown sugar, orange zest, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Then, combine the butter mixture with dark rum in a heat-proof glass and pour boiling water over the top. A squeeze of fresh orange juice finishes off this warming alcoholic drink.
Get Well Soon
When the common cold strikes, treating yourself or your customers to a warming cocktail can be the best way to provide relief and enjoy something special. Find everything you need to make cocktails, stock a bar or host an event by browsing the wide selection of alcoholic beverages, including whiskey, bourbon, scotch, liqueurs, and rum, at Columbia Distributing. Contact us for more information about the brands we distribute or to place an order.