With the holiday party season approaching, The Daily Beast finds which seasonal cocktails are the most disastrous to your diet.
It’s not surprising that whipped-cream-topped hot chocolate can be loaded with sugar and fat, but do you know what’s lurking in your favorite holiday tipple?
To sort through all the sweet and savory options when it comes to drinking after dark, The Daily Beast calculated the nutritional details for some holiday favorites. Since the variations on drinks are nearly infinite, we stuck to some rules. The drinks included had to be either traditional holiday cocktails, such as eggnog, or seasonal variations on classic cocktails, such as a pumpkin-pie martini or a holiday twist on a caipirinha. All the drinks were ranked based on nutritional information per serving according to the specific recipe for each. Nutritional information for each component is based on the USDA nutrient database.
Servings: 10
Ingredients:
Peel from 4 large limes
1 cup fresh lime juice
8 1/4-inch-thick slices peeled fresh ginger
1/4 cup sugar
30 large fresh mint leaves, plus 10 fresh mint sprigs for garnish
1 cup Brazilian rum (such as cachaça)
3 cups ice cubes plus additional for serving
5 cups ginger beer or ginger ale
Calories (estimated, per serving): 120
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 16
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon white granulated or demerara sugar
3–4 ounces boiling water
2 ounces cognac, single-malt scotch, or pot-stilled rum, rye, or bourbon
Calories (estimated, per serving): 140
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 2
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
1 ounce Plymouth gin
1 ounce pumpkin puree
1 1/2 ounce fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 ounce simple syrup
Champagne
Calories (estimated, per serving): 170
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 25
Servings: 10
Ingredients:
2 (12-ounce) bags fresh cranberries
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
3 1/3 cups chilled tonic water
1 1/4 cups gin
3 tablespoons, plus 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
Calories (estimated, per serving): 175
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 35
Servings: 2
4 ounces (1/2 cup) bourbon
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) sweet vermouth
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) dry vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Calories (estimated, per serving): 190
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 0
Corbis
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
1 ounce unprocessed simple syrup
1/2 fresh-squeezed lemon juice
2 ounces Douglas Fir tea
2 ounces vodka
Calories (estimated, per serving): 190
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 15
Servings: 8
Ingredients:
4 cups apple cider
4 cups cranberry juice
1 orange, sliced into thin rounds
orange slices for garnish
1 teaspoon allspice
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1 whole nutmeg
10 cinnamon sticks
1 cup apple brandy, such as Calvados
Calories (estimated, per serving): 195
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 20
Servings: 8
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups red wine
1 1/2 cups port
1 1/2 cups vodka
6 pods green cardamom
4 cloves
1 orange peel
1–2 sticks cinnamon
Blanched almonds, sliced
Brown raisins
Calories (estimated, per serving): 200
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 5
Servings: 5
Ingredients:
1 navel orange
8 whole cloves
1 (750-ml) bottle ruby port
Calories (estimated, per serving): 225
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 15
Servings: 16
Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb fresh or frozen cranberries (6 cups; thawed if frozen)
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
4 1/2 cups water
1 (750-ml) bottle vodka
Calories (estimated, per serving): 234
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 5
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
2 ounces Reposado or Añejo tequila
1 ounce Kahlua coffee liqueur
1 teaspoon sugar or turbinado sugar syrup
Strong, hot coffee, preferably Colombian
Grand Marnier whipped cream
Calories (estimated, per serving): 235
Fat: 4
Carbohydrates: 12
Servings: 12
Ingredients:
2 eggs, separated
1⁄8 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 1⁄2 cups plus 2 teaspoons dark rum
2⁄3 cup superfine sugar
1⁄4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1⁄8 teaspoon ground allspice
1⁄8 teaspoon ground cloves
4 1⁄2 cups milk
1 1⁄2 cups cognac
Freshly grated nutmeg
Calories (estimated, per serving): 245
Fat: 4
Carbohydrates: 18
Servings: 5
Ingredients:
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup water
strips lemon zest
10 black peppercorns
3 cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1/2 cup orange liqueur
1/2 cup gin
1 bottle red wine
Calories (estimated, per serving): 330
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 35
Servings: 10
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice, plus more for garnish
8 cups whole milk
6 large egg yolks
3 cups brandy
Calories (estimated, per serving): 395
Fat: 9
Carbohydrates: 30
Servings: 2
Ingredients:
3 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
3 tablespoons cranberry syrup
3 tablespoons tequila
2 tablespoons triple sec
2 tablespoons lime juice
Calories (estimated, per serving): 395
Fat: 0
Carbohydrates: 79
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
1/4 cup chilled whipping cream
3 teaspoons sugar
1 1/3 cups hot strong coffee
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) Irish whiskey
Calories (estimated, per serving): 460
Fat: 22
Carbohydrates: 15
Servings: 12
Ingredients:
2 quarts whole milk
2 2/3 cups sugar
1 vanilla bean, split, seeds scraped
16 large egg yolks
2 cups cold heavy cream
1/2 cup bourbon
1/2 cup dark rum
Freshly grated nutmeg, for sprinkling
Calories (estimated, per serving): 520
Fat: 26
Carbohydrates: 53
Servings: 2
Ingredients:
2 ounces (1/4 cup) vanilla vodka
2 ounces (1/4 cup) crème de cacao
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon pumpkin-pie spice
Whipped cream, for garnish
Calories (estimated, per serving): 580
Fat: 25
Carbohydrates: 35
Servings: 1
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons softened butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
Pinch of nutmeg
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 ounce rum
Pat of melted butter to garnish
Calories (estimated, per serving): 690
Fat: 46
Carbohydrates: 25
Servings: 10
Ingredients:
1 coconut
3/4 to 1 bottle (750 ml) dark or light rum
1 (13 1/2–ounce) can coconut milk
1 (15-ounce) can cream of coconut
2 1/2 (12-ounce) cans evaporated milk
2 large cinnamon sticks
Ice cubes, for serving
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
Calories (estimated, per serving): 894
Fat: 42
Carbohydrates: 73
