Holiday Drinks: Valentine's Day Cocktails for Lovers

St. Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day is the lover's holiday. One legend tells us that Valentine's Day came about when Claudius II was Emperor of Rome. During the third Century, about 270, Valentine was a priest incarcerated and put to death for performing secret marriages.

Claudius II had banned marriage in an effort to recruit soldiers. The Emperor felt young single men would be more inclined to sign on to duty. Valentine disobeyed Claudius II and performed marriages in secret. When Claudius discovered Valentine's actions, Valentine was imprisoned and put to death on February 14^th by bludgeoning and beheading. (The History Channel)

In honor of Valentine, on February 14 we celebrate romance. Couples will exchange tokens of love and admiration. How about exchanging a toast, dedicating devotion to your lover, with one of these cocktails geared toward coupling?

Outlined here are 30 plus 1 drink recipes. Since 2008 is a leap year, the "one" cocktail is a bonus. Instructions for pouring, shaking, and basic tools can be found in "Bartender Basics for Holiday Parties".

Climax

½ oz White crème de Cacao
½ oz Amaretto
½ oz Triple sec
½ oz Banana liqueur
1 oz Cream

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and shake. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry.

Hot Pants

1 ½ oz Tequila
¾ oz Peppermint Schnapps
1 tbsp Grapefruit juice
½ tsp grenadine

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and shake. Pour the mixture into a rim salted rocks glass, ice and all. To salt a rim, dampen the rim of glass with the wedge of a lime. Pour salt on a plate, or in a bowl large enough to accommodate the glass, and dip the rim into the salt.

Hot Sex

1 oz Coffee Liqueur
1 oz Orange Liqueur

Pour ingredients into a large shot glass or a rocks glass. Microwave for 10-15 seconds.

Hot Shots

½ oz Vodka
½ oz Peppermint Schnapps
A few drops of Tabasco Sauce

Pour the Vodka and Peppermint Schnapps into a shot glass and top with the Tabasco sauce. If you like, try a body shot with shooters like this. A body shot is done using a tall slender shot glass. Place the shot glass in your cleavage, using no hands, your lover grasps the glass with their mouth and drinks it down.

Italian Stallion

1 ½ oz Bourbon
½ oz Sweet Vermouth
½ oz Campari
1-2 dashes of Angostura bitters

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and stir. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Garnish with a lemon twist. To make lemon twists, cut the ends off a lemon and discard. Slice the lemon peel vertically in approximately ¼ inch strips. Pull the peel strips off the lemon, removing most of the rind, and twist.

Jungle Jim

1 oz Vodka
1 oz Banana Liqueur
1 oz Heavy cream

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and shake. Strain into a rocks glass.

Kiss in the Dark

¾ oz Gin
¾ oz Cherry Brandy
¼ oz Dry Vermouth

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Pour in your ingredients and shake. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Leap Year

1 ½ oz Gin
½ oz Grand Marnier
½ oz Sweet Vermouth
1 tsp lemon juice

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Pour in your ingredients and stir. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Lion Tamer

¾ oz southern Comfort
¼ oz lime juice

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Pour in Southern Comfort and lime juice. Stir and strain into a shot glass.

Little Devil

1 oz gin
1 oz Gold rum
½ oz Triple sec
½ oz lemon juice

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and stir. Strain into a chilled glass.

Long Hot Night

2 oz Bourbon
3 oz Pineapple juice
3 oz Cranberry juice cocktail

In a highball glass, use 4-5 cubes of ice. Pour in your bourbon and stir. Add your juices and stir again.

Lover's Delight

¾ oz Cointreau
¾ oz Forbidden Fruit
¾ oz Brandy

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and shake. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice.

Maiden's Blush

1 oz gin
4 dashes of Curacao
4 dashes of grenadine
2 dashes of lemon juice

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and shake. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Mission Accomplished

2 oz vodka
½ oz Triple sec
¼ oz Rose's lime juice
A dash of grenadine

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add your ingredients and shake. Strain into shot glasses. This will make approximately two shots.

Orgasm

½ oz White Crème de cacao
½ oz Amaretto
½ oz Triple sec
½ oz Vodka
1 oz Heavy cream

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Pour in your ingredients and shake. Strain into a rocks glass filled with ice.

Peach Velvet

1 ½ oz Peach Brandy
½ oz White Crème de Cacao
½ oz Heavy cream

In a blender, use approximately 4 oz of crushed ice; add your ingredients and blend on a medium speed until smooth. Pour into a large stemmed glass. Garnish with a fresh peach slice.

Purple Passion

1 ½ oz Vodka
Grape juice

Fill a highball glass with ice. Pour in your vodka and fill with grape juice. Stir and serve.

Quickie

1 oz Bourbon
1 oz Light rum
½ oz Triple sec

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add all ingredients and stir. Strain into a chilled glass.

Red Panties

1 ½ oz Vodka
½ oz Peach Schnapps
1 oz Orange juice
1 oz Cranberry juice cocktail
A dash of grenadine

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add all ingredients and shake. Strain into a chilled glass.

Run, Skip and Go Naked

½ oz Gin
½ oz Rum
½ oz Brandy
2 oz Sour mix
Beer

Fill a tall glass with ice. Pour in your gin, rum, brandy and sour mix. Fill with beer and stir.

Sex in a Hot Tub

1 oz Vodka
½ oz Peach Schnapps
½ oz Black Raspberry Liqueur
1 tsp of Cranberry juice cocktail
1 tsp of Pineapple Juice
Champagne

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Pour in vodka, peach schnapps, black raspberry liqueur, and juices. Shake and strain into a cocktail glass filled with ice. Fill with champagne.

Sex on the Beach

1 oz Vodka
½ oz Midori (melon liqueur)
½ oz Chambord (raspberry liqueur)
1 ½ oz Pineapple juice
1 ½ oz Cranberry juice cocktail

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add all of your ingredients and shake. Strain into a highball glass filled with ice. To make shooters out of this, mix using only 1 oz each of your juices and strain into shot glasses for two to three shots.

Sex on the Beach in Winter

1 oz Vodka
1 oz Peach Schnapps
½ tsp Cream of Coconut
Pineapple juice
Cranberry juice cocktail

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Pour in vodka, peach schnapps, and cream of coconut. Fill with equal parts of your juices. Shake and pour into a serving glass.

Silver Nipple

1 ½ oz Sambuca
1 oz Vodka

Fill a rocks glass with ice. Pour in your sambuca and vodka and stir.

Slippery Nipple

2 oz Sambuca
1 ½ oz Bailey's Irish Cream
A drop of grenadine

In a cocktail glass, pour in your Sambuca. Float or layer your Bailey's on top. Add the drop of grenadine right in the center of the drink. To float or layer a shot, tilt your glass and pour the second liquor slowly down the inside of the glass. The same effect can be achieved by pouring the liquor slowly over the back of a spoon.

Sloe Comfortable Screw

½ oz vodka
½ oz sloe gin
½ oz Southern Comfort
Orange juice

Fill a highball glass with ice. Add your vodka, sloe gin, and Southern Comfort. Fill with your orange juice and stir. Garnish with a slice of orange.

Snuggler

1 ½ oz Peppermint Schnapps
Hot Chocolate

Pour your schnapps into a mug and fill with hot chocolate. Top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings.

Sweet Cream

1 ½ oz Kahlua
½ oz Bailey's Irish Cream

In a cordial glass, pour in your Kahlua and layer or float the Bailey's on top.

Sweetie Baby

2 oz Amaretto
5 oz Vanilla ice cream
½ oz milk may be added to thin, if desired.

In a blender, blend ingredients until smooth at a medium speed. Serve in a large stemmed glass. Garnish with crushed almonds.

Teddy Bear

½ oz Root Beer Schnapps
½ oz Vodka

Pour your schnapps into a shot glass. Layer the vodka on top.

Velvet Kiss

1 oz Gin
½ oz Banana Liqueur
½ oz Pineapple Juice
1 oz Heavy Cream

Fill a mixing glass with ice. Add all of your ingredients and shake. Strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Remember that drinking and driving do not mix. Always designate a driver when consuming alcohol.

Sources:

Personal experience
The History Channel
Feller, Robyn M. The Complete Bartender. New York: Berkley Books, 1990.