Holiday Cheer: Festive Cocktail Recipes to Warm Your Celebrations

The holidays land differently up here. The light goes gold across Lumpy Ridge by four in the afternoon, the elk are bedded down in somebody's front yard, and the drive up the canyon takes your guests a little longer than they planned. By the time everyone finally walks through the door, stamping snow off their boots, what they want is a fire, a chair, and something warm in a glass.

These are three cocktails we come back to every December. They are simple, they use seasonal flavors like maple, chocolate, rosemary, and citrus, and none of them require a bar cart full of equipment. We have also included something you will not find on a national recipe site: exactly where to buy every ingredient without leaving Estes Park, plus a few honest notes about pouring drinks at 7,522 feet.

Whether you are hosting the whole family in a mountain rental, settling into your first winter in a new Estes Park home, or just looking for a better reason to sit by the fire, we hope one of these earns a spot in your holiday rotation.

Three Things to Know Before You Pour

•       Altitude changes the experience, not the recipe. The measurements below are the same at 7,522 feet as they are at sea level. What changes is how quickly your guests feel them. More on this below.

•       Two of the three ingredients you cannot improvise are bitters. Walnut bitters and chocolate bitters are specialty items. Plan ahead rather than hoping to grab them the morning of your party.

•       You can source almost all of this in town. Estes Park has two working distilleries and several long-standing local liquor shops. You do not need to drive to Loveland for this.

1. Maple Walnut Old Fashioned

This one takes the classic Old Fashioned and gives it a quiet, woodsy turn. The maple replaces the sugar cube, the walnut bitters add a toasted, almost nutty depth, and the result feels like it belongs in a room with a fire in it. This is the drink for the guest who says they do not really like cocktails, and then asks for a second one.

Ingredients

•       2 oz bourbon

•       1/4 oz pure maple syrup

•       3 dashes walnut bitters

•       Cracked walnut for garnish

Instructions

Add all ingredients to a mixing glass and stir with ice to chill. Strain into a serving glass over fresh ice and garnish with a cracked walnut.

A note on the maple

Use real maple syrup, the darker the better. Pancake syrup is corn syrup with caramel color in it and it will flatten the whole drink. This is the one ingredient where the upgrade is genuinely worth it.

2. Chocolate Covered Cherry Old Fashioned

This is dessert in a rocks glass, and it is the one that disappears fastest at a party. The Luxardo brings a dark, almost jammy cherry note that has nothing in common with the neon red maraschinos of your childhood, and the chocolate bitters tie it all together. Serve it after dinner and skip making a pie.

Ingredients

•       2 oz bourbon

•       1/2 oz Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur

•       4 dashes chocolate bitters

•       Cherry and a dark chocolate square for garnish

Instructions

Add the bourbon, Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur, and chocolate bitters to a shaker with ice. Stir well and strain into a rocks glass over ice. Garnish with a cherry and a square of dark chocolate.

Make it a gift

A bottle of Luxardo, a jar of the cherries, and a small bottle of chocolate bitters make an excellent gift for the host who has everything. It is the kind of present that gets used, which is more than most holiday gifts can claim.

3. Fireside

The outlier of the three, and the one we would hand to someone who wants a cocktail but not a heavy one. Rosemary crushed into maple and salt gives it an herbal, savory backbone, and the grapefruit keeps it bright. It is cozy and refreshing at the same time, which sounds like a contradiction until you taste it.

Ingredients

•       1.5 oz vodka

•       1/4 oz organic maple syrup

•       1 sprig rosemary

•       Pinch of salt

•       2 oz grapefruit juice

Instructions

In the bottom of a rocks glass, crush the rosemary leaves into the maple syrup and salt. Fill with ice, add the vodka, and top with grapefruit juice. Stir well and garnish with a fresh sprig of rosemary.

The easy non-alcoholic version

Leave out the vodka, keep everything else, and top with sparkling water. It is genuinely good, and it means the designated drivers and the folks who are not drinking are not stuck holding a glass of tap water while everyone else has something festive. Worth doing.

Where to Find These Ingredients in Estes Park

This is the part the national recipe blogs cannot help you with. Here is how to source all three drinks without leaving town.

Spirits

For the bourbon and whiskey, you have two hometown options worth knowing about. Elkins Distilling Co. at 137 E. Elkhorn Avenue distills and bottles Colorado craft whisky right here in Estes Park, and their tasting room has patio views of Longs Peak and Mount Meeker. Making an Old Fashioned with whiskey distilled at altitude a few blocks from your kitchen is a nice thing to be able to tell your guests.

For the vodka in the Fireside, Estes Park Distilling Co. at 124 W. Elkhorn Avenue makes flavored vodkas, whiskeys, and moonshines, and shares a roof with Bob and Tony's Pizzeria, which is a combination that only makes sense once you have been there.

Liquor stores

For everything else, including the Luxardo, the town's local shops are your best bet:

•       Bart's Liquor, 453 E. Wonderview Avenue

•       Longhorn Liquor Mart, 1640 Big Thompson Avenue, family owned and operated for over 40 years

•       Spur Liquor, 880 Moraine Avenue

•       Rocky Mountain Discount Liquor, 182 S. St. Vrain Avenue

The bitters, which are the tricky part

Walnut bitters and chocolate bitters are specialty items, and this is the one place we want to set honest expectations. Some of the local shops carry a bitters selection beyond the standard Angostura and some do not, and inventory shifts. Call ahead rather than driving around.

If nobody in town has them when you need them, order them online in early November and be done with it. A bottle of bitters lasts for years, and having walnut and chocolate bitters on the shelf means you can make both Old Fashioneds on twenty minutes notice for the rest of the winter.

Fresh ingredients

•       Grapefruit juice, rosemary, and dark chocolate: Safeway at 451 E. Wonderview Avenue, or the local grocers downtown

•       Real maple syrup: worth buying the good stuff, and the grocery stores in town carry it

•       Walnuts for the garnish: any grocery store, and buy them in the shell if you want the cracked-walnut look

Hosting at Altitude: A Few Honest Notes

Estes Park sits at 7,522 feet, and if you are new to town or hosting guests who are driving up from Denver, Texas, or the Midwest, this is worth a minute of your attention. It is the single most useful thing we can tell you about serving drinks in the mountains, and almost nobody mentions it.

Alcohol hits harder, and faster

The alcohol itself is not stronger at altitude. What changes is your guests. Lower oxygen levels, mild dehydration from the dry air, and the fatigue of a long drive up the canyon all stack together, and a person who normally handles two drinks comfortably at sea level can feel noticeably affected after one. Someone who arrived in Colorado that same afternoon has not acclimated at all yet.

What to do about it

•       Put out water. A lot of it. Pitchers on the table, not a glass someone has to ask for.

•       Feed people before you pour. Something substantial, not just a bowl of chips.

•       Make the non-alcoholic Fireside so nobody feels like an afterthought.

•       Watch your out-of-town guests, especially anyone who arrived that day. They will not know what they are feeling.

•       Plan for people to stay. Winter roads and mountain driving do not forgive a second cocktail.

None of this is meant to take the fun out of the evening. Quite the opposite. A little planning is the difference between a holiday party people remember fondly and one somebody remembers a little too well.

From Our Table to Yours

Part of what makes Estes Park what it is, is that the holidays here are still built around people showing up at each other's houses. The parade comes through, the lights go up on Elkhorn, and then everybody scatters into living rooms and kitchens across town with a drink in hand and someone's dog underfoot.

That is the part we love, and it is the part we mean when we talk about connecting people to place. A house becomes a home the first time you host in it.

If you are thinking about what it would take to make Estes Park the place where you spend the holidays, rather than the place where you visit them, we would welcome the conversation. No pressure and no pitch, just the honest local perspective that comes from living here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where can I buy walnut bitters and chocolate bitters in Estes Park?

Bitters selections vary by store and inventory changes seasonally. Your best local options are Bart's Liquor on E. Wonderview Avenue, Longhorn Liquor Mart on Big Thompson Avenue, Spur Liquor on Moraine Avenue, and Rocky Mountain Discount Liquor on S. St. Vrain Avenue. Call ahead before making the trip. If nobody in town has them, order online in early November. A bottle of bitters keeps for years.

Are there distilleries in Estes Park?

Yes, two. Elkins Distilling Co. at 137 E. Elkhorn Avenue distills and bottles Colorado craft whisky in Estes Park and has a tasting room with views of Longs Peak and Mount Meeker. Estes Park Distilling Co. at 124 W. Elkhorn Avenue produces flavored vodkas, whiskeys, and moonshines, and shares its downtown location with Bob and Tony's Pizzeria.

Does alcohol affect you more at high altitude?

The alcohol is not stronger, but people commonly feel its effects more quickly at elevation. Estes Park sits at 7,522 feet, and lower oxygen levels combined with the dehydrating effect of dry mountain air mean guests can feel a drink more than they expect. This is especially true for visitors who arrived that same day and have not acclimated. Serve plenty of water, offer food, and plan transportation ahead of time.

What is the difference between an Old Fashioned made with maple syrup and one made with sugar?

Maple syrup dissolves instantly into the spirit, where a sugar cube needs to be muddled, and it brings a rounder, slightly caramel note that pairs naturally with bourbon. Use pure maple syrup, ideally a darker grade. Pancake syrup is largely corn syrup and will make the drink taste flat.

Can I make these cocktails without alcohol?

The Fireside adapts easily. Leave out the vodka, keep the rosemary, maple, salt, and grapefruit juice, and top with sparkling water. The two Old Fashioned variations are built around the spirit itself and do not translate as cleanly, so the Fireside is the one to make for guests who are not drinking.

What is Luxardo Maraschino Liqueur and can I substitute something for it?

Luxardo is an Italian cherry liqueur with a dark, complex, slightly nutty character, and it is not interchangeable with the syrup in a jar of bright red cocktail cherries. If you cannot find it, a quality cherry liqueur is a closer substitute than anything else, but the drink is genuinely better with the real thing.

What is a good holiday gift for someone who likes cocktails in Estes Park?

A bottle from Elkins Distilling Co. or Estes Park Distilling Co. is a strong choice because it is local, giftable, and something a visitor cannot pick up at home. Pair it with a bottle of specialty bitters and you have a gift the recipient will actually use.

Resources and Links

Connect with the Signature Home Team community:

Estes Park Living on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@EstesParkLiving

Everything Estes Park Facebook Group: https://bit.ly/EverythingEstesPark

Instagram: instagram.com/signaturehometeam

Facebook: facebook.com/SignatureHomeTeam

Local spirits mentioned in this post:

Elkins Distilling Co.: elkinsdistilling.com

Estes Park Distilling Co.: fullthrottledistillery.com

Please enjoy responsibly. These recipes are intended for guests of legal drinking age. If you are hosting at altitude, plan transportation ahead of time.

About the Author: Jeff Abel is a licensed real estate agent with Signature Home Team, brokered by Keller Williams Top of the Rockies, specializing in Estes Park and Northern Colorado mountain communities. He shares insights about real estate and mountain living through the Estes Park Living channel.