TDC CALENDAR: DECEMBER 2021

Photograph of a milky drink with nuts, cookies, an egg and gold equipment

INSPIRATION: CHRISTMAS MILK & COOKIES 🥛🍪

Everyone knows Santa loves milk and cookies – especially when they’re left beside the fireplace to fuel his snowy sleigh rides. But even Father Christmas himself can’t resist a little naughtiness from time to time.

We’ve created a festive drink that gives traditional milk and cookies a grown-up kick. Drawing on seasonal references of silky eggnog and your granny’s after dinner sherry, our final drink the TDC Calendar delivers sugar, spice and all things nice.

THE DRINK: BAD SANTA 🎅

50mls Cognac

20ml Chocolate chip cookie milk cordial*

15mls PX Sherry

A whole egg

3 dashes Aztec chocolate bitters

Glass: Nick and Nora

Ice: None

Garnish: Freshly grated nutmeg (though not used in the calendar image)

Method: Add all ingredients to a shaker with ice. Strain back into shaker and remove ice. Shake again without ice. Fine strain into glass.

*Chocolate chip cookie milk cordial:
Crumble two packs of chocolate chip cookies into one litre of milk. Place in the fridge and leave for two hours. Once infused, strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve. When most of he liquid is strained, use a ladle to press the cookie solids and squeeze out any remaining milk. Next, weigh out your cookie infused milk and prepare an equal weight of sugar. Add the milk to a pan and gently heat through, then tip the sugar into milk and stir until it is fully dissolved. Allow to cool before using.

how we shot it  📸

With a drink inspired by Santa’s dark side, it was only right for our set to showcase the darker side of Christmas too. But we don’t mean Mr. Claus’ impending DUI.

Christmas itself originates from the winter solstice festival, which marks the day with the shortest period of daylight and longest period of nighttime each year. This year, it falls on 21st December, just as Santa will be warming up his sleigh.

Recreating the early dusk of the December months, we shot our final image of the year against a backdrop of dark wood. Adding a nod to eggnog with a pop of rich yolk and shell, some traditional branches and nuts, and a stack of cookies primed for dunking, we shot the scene from a slightly elevated angle with a close crop. The finishing touch is a sprinkle of festive sparkle to bring the Christmas magic to life.

The Drink Cabinet