Have yourself a tropical little Cocktail Party

Let your drinks be rum-based and bright

(photo credit: Joy Sheerer)

I treasure that the holiday season is one in which we deck our homes with all things merry and bright. It is a tradition that has always made good sense to me – longer nights and colder conditions outdoors benefit from a counterbalance of sparkling, twinkling and warming details indoors. 

I have realized, with age, that the way we decorate our homes this time of year reveals something more profoundly true about life: Regardless of how much darkness a season may hold, we have the capacity to shine from within. 

Just as our homes illuminate a brilliant reminder of hope and renewal for all to see, we have the capacity to shine goodness into the lives of others. This human attribute to support and care for neighbors, family and friends is perhaps the ultimate reminder of the value of the holiday season. We are together in this life, even in times of darkness. In fact, our togetherness is the brightest of stars.

Chilled-out cocktail party

The winter may be our very-most festive time of year, but all the holly-jolliness often means we’re navigating a jam-packed calendar. A thoughtful gift for the special people in your life would be an evening of comfort and ease. I can think of no better festival to throw for achieving this goal than a cocktail party with island flavors and tropical aesthetics. Inviting the tropics into your home will encourage guests to take a pose of much-needed chill during the hustle and bustle of the season.

What’s more, a cocktail party with a tropical emphasis celebrates what comes naturally to us when we are enjoying a sunny vacation – the importance of taking care of ourselves, one another and our world. Begin by letting friends know that this will be a party of relaxed, quality time together. Then pick a few tropical cocktails to serve. When I consider beach-side drinks, I immediately think of rum.  

Rum’s association with beach days and lingering sunsets is in the spirit’s favor. Warming and alluring in its multi-layered flavor profile, rum is perhaps the most underrated bottle in your home bar. Lean into the sunny stance of rum with my island-inspired holiday cocktails.

Using best, fresh-est ingredients will always add to the luxury of any party. The cocktail recipes I’m sharing feature fresh fruit and seasonal flavors, but what makes them unforgettable is the use of locally-made Sergeant Classick’s Gold Rum. The complexity of this passionately distilled aged rum is remarkable. Made of fermented Hawaiian molasses, Sergeant Classick’s Gold Rum entices immediately with aromas of ripe fruits and brown sugar. On the palate, vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon attributes make Sergeant Classick’s Gold Rum the most festive of holiday spirits. This rum is exactly what you need to flavor your holiday season with goodwill and grace.

Producer Essential Spirits (essentialspirits.com) is a craft-distillery located in Mountain View. Since 1998, the Classick family have been distilling boutique spirit bottlings. Current offerings include craft rum, bierschnapps, grappa and eau de vie. Their early entry into the craft-distillery world, when there were just six craft-distilleries on the West Coast, sets Essential Spirits firmly in the movement that would become the craft cocktail renaissance of the late 1990s and early 2000s. What makes their spirits so extraordinary is their passion, precision and their custom-made alembic still. Their unique still was smithed and installed by third-generation French still makers whose coppersmithing has been recognized as a cultural treasure in France.

I learned from Dave Classick, Jr, a chief distiller, that stills are as distinguishable as fingerprints, each producing a truly bespoke bottling. The alembic pot still of Essential Spirits is what Classick, Jr. refers to as the “Rolls-Royce of stills.” 

Sergeant Classick Gold and Silver Rum borrows its name from master distiller and co-founder of Essential Spirits, Dave Classick, Sr., who is a highly decorated Vietnam veteran. To purchase Sergeant’s Classick's Gold and Silver, or Essential Spirits' other liquors, visit Ava’s Downtown Market in Mountain View. 

(photo credit: Joy Sheerer)

Making spirits bright 

While some parties benefit from make-ahead efficiency, I like to shake or stir each cocktail to order. This approach sets a much-needed slower pace and gives me one-on-one time with each guest. Since this is cocktail party, there is no need to serve a sit-down meal. Instead, I order platters of fresh sushi and tempura from our favorite sushi restaurant. Then all that is left to do is to answer the doorbell’s ring with a wide smile and open arms. 

Deck your home with sights and sounds of summer

By adding a few subtle touches, guests will feel they have escaped to the tropics as soon as they enter your home. Tropical floral displays and greenery mixed with twinkling lights set a joyful mood. “Mele Kalikimaka: An Island Style Christmas,” which is a holiday classics complication album featuring some of the best Polynesian singers, will provide the ideal soundtrack for your party. For less holiday-centric tunes, put on anything by Ka’au Crater Boys. 

(written for Home for the Holidays magazine)