Snow Day

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Cocktail History

The Snow Day is a winter cocktail that was created by food writer and author Jessica Strand and was first published in Very Merry Cocktails: 50+ Festive Drinks for the Holiday Season. The recipe listed in the book called for mixing elderflower liqueur with dry sparkling white wine and topping it with frosted blueberries; our version adds in a homemade sous vide syrup for more blueberry flavor.

Cocktail Ingredients

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:

Sparkling Wine: This is a carbonated wine made with white or red grapes. We used Schramsberg Vineyard Mirabelle Brut because it’s smooth and flavorful. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Gruvi Non-Alcoholic Prosecco in place of the sparkling wine.

Elderflower Liqueur: This is a liqueur made with elderflowers, citrus, herbs, sugar, and alcohol. We used Edinburgh Gin Distillery Elderflower Gin Liqueur because it’s high quality and has a fresh, floral aroma and flavor. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Monin Premium Elderflower Syrup in place of the elderflower liqueur.

Blueberry Syrup: This is a sweetener made with blueberries, white sugar, gum Arabic powder, citric acid, and water. We made ours at home using Alex’s sous vide recipe.

Sugar: This is a sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrate. We used C&H Pure Cane Granulated Sugar.

Blueberries: This is a small blue fruit. We used fresh blueberries.

Bartending Tools

To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:

Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. We used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.

Bar Spoon: This is used to stir ingredients. We used the Barfly Stainless Steel Teardrop Bar Spoon.

Cocktail Pick: This is used to hold the garnish. We used one from the Homestia Stainless Steel Cocktail Pick Set.

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Tasting Notes

The Snow Day starts with the scent of wine and elderflower, and it has a fairly straightforward and accessible taste that is mostly comprised of wine accented with floral notes and sweet fruit.

Our Opinion of This Cocktail Recipe: While far from revolutionary in design, this recipe ticked a lot of boxes for us, and we think anyone would feel the same. Plus, the Snow Day recipe’s simplicity makes it easy enough to make at home.

Kendall’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
“The original recipe for this drink only called for sparkling wine and elderflower liqueur, which didn’t really scream ‘winter’ to me in any way. It was obvious that the star was supposed to be the candied blueberry garnish given that was the only truly unique ingredient, so I asked Alex if we could at least mix in some blueberry simple syrup to add some complexity and play up the berry flavor a bit more. He went for it, and just that one change along with dialing the elderflower way back made the cocktail much tastier. Plus, it turned it a brilliant bright pink hue. I still don’t know if it’s really ‘wintery,’ but the frosty garnish does add a bit of snow-inspired flair.”

Recipe

This cocktail recipe was adapted from Very Merry Cocktails: 50+ Festive Drinks for the Holiday Season by Jessica Strand.

This post contains affiliate links, meaning we make a small commission each time you purchase a product using our links. Product images sourced from Amazon Product Advertising API. Amazon affiliate links last updated on 2024-10-14.