With the triple whammy of Halloween, the Day of the Dead and Guy Fawkes to contend with, not to mention winter’s tightening grip, this week more than any other calls for warming drinks to keep all those ghouls at bay.
Mulling makes sense for an outdoor autumn gathering, but it seems a bit early to think mulled wine. Cider fits the bill, being redolent of autumnal apples and a colour that sits so well against pumpkins. I’m a West Country girl, so veer towards a dry farmyard scrumpy bought in a flagon from a farmer with straw in his hair – hard to get hold of outside cider-making regions: Weston’s Old Rosie (£5 for two litres, Morrisons; £57 for a 20-litre bag in box, Tesco; 7.3% abv) is a good alternative, and has an abv to match the real McCoy. Or try Addlestones Cloudy Cider (around £2 for a 500ml bottle at Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Ocado; 5% abv), whose gentler strength means it’s rather safer to drink before you light the blue touch-paper.
To mull cider, for each litre you’ll need 5cm grated root ginger, six cloves, half a cinnamon stick, four crushed cardamom pods, two tablespoons runny honey, an optional Earl Grey teabag and half an orange cut into chunks. Combine in a large pan, cover and leave to infuse for 24 hours. Half an hour before your guests arrive, heat it gently for 15 minutes or so, adding a bit more honey if you like things sweeter, then strain into a clean pan and keep it warm on the hob, making sure you don’t let it boil. (Transfer to a vacuum flask if you’re on the move.)
For more solitary pleasures, it’s hard to go wrong with a whisky mac, for which all you need is a bottle of Stone’s Ginger Wine (widely available, around £6.50 for 70cl; 13.5% abv) and some wallet-friendly whisky: Aldi’s Highland Black Eight-Year-Old (£12.99; 40% abv) punches well above its weight for the price, though any decent blend will do (I’m partial to Famous Grouse or Tullamore Dew). A stiff whisky mac (mix ginger wine and whisky to your taste, over ice in a tumbler) will shut out the din of pesky trick-or-treaters, while a hot toddy (whisky, ginger wine, lemon juice, honey and hot water) might just tempt you to open the door and give them a shortbread.
The Day of the Dead, on the other hand, clearly calls for tequila. Treat yourself gently and sip Patrón XO Cafe (around £20 for 70cl, Tesco, Waitrose and good independents; 35% abv), a wonderfully luscious, tequila-based coffee liqueur that should see you through until the fireworks have fizzled out, and without sending you loco.
• Kate Hawkings is co-owner of Bellita in Bristol. Fiona Beckett is away.
