LINCOLN SQUARE — 'Tis the season to be jolly, and nothing quite puts the "merry" in Merry Christmas like a holiday cocktail.
No need to head to some River North bar to enjoy festive libations. Local watering holes in and around Lincoln Square are experts at making spirits bright.
We give you the 12 Cocktails of Christmas:
1. Let's kick things off with a mug of Glühwein at the Huettenbar. This German-style mulled wine is flavored with citrus, cinnamon and cloves and tastes like the distilled essence of a Christkindl market. 4721 N. Lincoln Ave.
2. Why do people only drink eggnog at Christmas? Um, because a glass of the stuff has more calories than a Whopper Jr. But what the heck, it's the holidays. Throw caution and your diet to the wind at Cafe Selmarie, which spikes its eggnog with dark rum and brandy. 4729 N. Lincoln Ave.
3. It's the most wonderful time of the year — when it's perfectly acceptable to order peppermint schnapps and sing along to Josh Groban's "Oh Holy Night" at the top of your lungs. Himmel's Peppermint Patty takes hot chocolate, adds a shot of schnapps, and tops it off with whipped cream and a candy cane. 2251 W. Lawrence Ave.
4. 'Tis also cold and flu season, so good thing The Grafton has a Hot Toddy on its winter cocktail menu. Some say the drink has curative powers, and who are we to argue. The Grafton's version is made with Jameson Irish whiskey, sugar in the raw, hot water and a clove-lemon. 4530 N. Lincoln Ave.
5. Figgy pudding is not really a Christmas tradition we can get behind but we're willing to give Fountainhead's Cup of Few Figs a try. The drink is made with fig-infused Few bourbon, ruby port, maple syrup and bitters and is garnished with a cherry soaked in maple syrup and bourbon. 1970 W. Montrose Ave.
6. December's dark and stormy nights call for a Dark & Stormy cocktail, which the bartenders at Gather will be happy to mix for you. Brugal rum provides the dark, lime juice and ginger beer bring the stormy. 4539 N. Lincoln Ave.
7. A splash of Prosecco gives the Robusti Spritz at Tiny Lounge an extra dash of holiday sparkle. Vodka, aperol and fresh lemon and orange juice round out this cocktail, a refreshing alternative to heavier spiced winter cocktails. 4352 N. Leavitt St.
8. Bad Apple's Cold Weather Punch has sugar (apple cider, pineapple and orange juices) and spice (cloves, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg) and something really nice — rum. 4300 N. Lincoln Ave.
9. Legend has it that the Sazerac was the first cocktail created in America, invented in, where else, New Orleans. It takes two glasses to mix this drink — one glass is swirled with a wash of absinthe while the remaining ingredients are stirred together in the second and strained into the first. Browntrout's version features Smooth Ambler Old Scout rye, Vieux Carre absinthe, Peychauds bitters and simple syrup. 4111 N. Lincoln Ave.
10. An Irish Coffee is the alcoholic equivalent of comfort food on cold winter's night. Naturally Mrs. Murphy & Sons Irish Bistro has a version of this classic drink on its menu, made with whiskey, Julius Meinl coffee, creme de menthe and whipped cream. 3905 N. Lincoln Ave.
11. For a different kind of caffeine buzz, head to Bread & Wine and order an X's & O's. The cocktail combines Patron's coffee liquer tequila, ginger liquer, cointreau and a cinnamon simple syrup. 3732 W. Irving Park Rd.
12. We've come to the end of our list, and it's time to go big or go home. Tortuga's Cantina has a 27-ounce margarita that's pretty much a party in a glass. If that's too much for you to handle, order the mojito and pretend you're someplace warm. 3224 W. Lawrence Ave.
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