Christmas Advent Cocktails

From December 1st until December 25th, every day in the countdown to Christmas should be celebrated in absolute style, we can do this by opening the doors of an Advent Calendar and enjoying what’s hidden inside, like chocolate or in more recent years, Lego figures, Funko POP’s, spirits, makeup, cheese and so much more, but when the tradition started, it was as simple as marking a real door with a piece of chalk, starting in the late 19th century in Germany, the Lutheranism, (a branch of Christianity) would mark a door with a piece of chalk from the 1st until the 24th of December.

People also started to burn a candle a day on the lead-up to Christmas or hang a devotional image each day, which led to the creation of the first wooden, handmade  Advent calendar in 1851.

The next evolutionary step in the development of Advent Calendars, either came from a protestant bookshop owner in Hamburg, Germany in 1902, as stated by the Landesmuseum in Switzerland or the first Advent Calendar was created by Gerhard Lang’s mother, in Germany, in 1909.

When Gerhard Lang was a little boy, his mother made him a calendar with 24 small candies attached to cardboard, with him allowed to enjoy one candy each day on the countdown to Christmas. Years later, when Gerhard Lang grew into adulthood, he operated the printing company, Reichhold & Lang, where he decided to draw on his childhood memory and create the first printed Advent Calendar sometime in the 1920s, printing festive images on a piece of cardboard with 24 little pictures hidden behind 24 little doors, but he wouldn’t release this product until a few years later, and when he did, people feel in love with the creation.

During the 2nd World War, Advent Calendars would take a back seat and Gerhard’s business would, like many others, severely suffer, so their development was mostly halted for a while, but in 1946, when the 34th U.S. President, Dwight D. Eisenhower was photographed opening an Advent Calendar with his grandchildren, it really helped popularise them in America.

From first print to Chocolate, it would take 49 years for Chocolate Advent Calendars to enter the scene in 1958. Cadbury Chocolate would then pick up on the idea and created their first Chocolate Advent Calendar in 1971, then again in 1972, but it wasn’t a tradition for them just yet, with them next producing some in 1978, 1979 & 1980, it was in the year 1993 that they started producing one every year.

‘Advent’ & ‘Calendar’ Origins To The Words

The word ‘Advent’ is derived from the Latin word for ‘coming’ or ‘coming to’, ‘coming toward’, with the dictionary describing it as ‘the arrival of a notable person or thing.’

The word ‘Calendar’ also comes from Latin, the first spelling was ‘Calendarium’ which meant ‘account book’ or ‘register’ with people settling debts at the calends of each month. The Latin term would then be adopted in Old French as ‘Calendier’ and from there made its way to England as ‘Calender’ by the 13th century.

Ruggeri – Prosecco

Deeply rooted in the tradition of winemaking, the history of Ruggeri Winery began in 1950, founded by Giustino Bisol and his cousin, whose surname, Ruggeri, they adopted the name as part of the brand for their company.

In the early days, Ruggeri was one of only a handful of producers around Valdobbiadene focused on sparkling wine. Giustino’s son Paolo and granddaughter Isabella have since taken the company forward with the same pioneering spirit.

Ruggeri – Quartese Prosecco Superiore DOCG Brut – Tasting Notes

Aroma – “White floral, green pears, white pears, honeysuckle, with delicate hints of freshly cut grass.”

Flavour – “Smooth white floral notes, green pears, white pears, honeysuckle, 

Silver Medal in the Light & Fruity Category at the Glass of Bubbly Awards 2022

Jasmine Monet – Argentina Sparkling Wine

Jasmine Monet is convinced that the terroir on which the grapes are grown, determines the personality and mood of a good Sparkling Wine, that’s why they’ve chosen several vineyards from the Gualtallary and Valle de Uco areas, they found the soil and climate to be perfect for the production of their Sparkling Wines.

With a great passion for respecting the environment, being sustainable and working for the future, they protect their terroir, to ensure that in generations to come, it can still produce the quality levels we get to taste today.

Jasmine Monet – Organic Brut ‘Black’ – Tasting Notes

Aroma – “Fresh apple blossom, green apple flesh, a delicate touch of freshly grown garden herbs and nettles.”

Flavour – “Refreshing green characters, apple flesh, lime skin, white pear, nettles.”

Silver Medal in Herbal Gardens at the Glass of Bubbly Awards 2022

The Neat & Shaken Collection Advent Calendar

 

Make this Christmas very Merry with this limited edition Gin Advent Calendar. Available exclusively on Neat & Shaken. Enjoy mini bottles of gin from Bloom, Opihr, Thomas Dakin, and Greenall’s, as well as a few surprises along the way! A wonderful array of different, unique spirits to include inside some festive Christmas Cocktails.

If you want to enjoy your own Christmas Cocktails on the Countdown Christmas with this Gin Advent Calendar, then you can use the discount code GOB15 to receive 15% off your order from the 25th until the end of the 30th of November: Neat & Shaken Collection Advent Calendar.

Neat & Shaken’s Advent Calendar goes that extra step, not just counting down until Christmas, but gifting you a final present to enjoy on Christmas Day.

Born from a love of Cocktail Making, whiskey drinking, gin appreciation and generally just enjoying a damn good drink, Neat & Shaken was created with the aim to provide you with class products at a price you like. From your favourite quality Irish Whiskeys to boutique botanical gins to liqueurs, and ready-to-drink cocktails.

The Cocktails of Christmas

With 25 doors waiting to be opened this year, use these ingredients to your advantage with crafting some amazing Cocktails in the lead-up to Christmas.

Spices of the World Cocktail

• Ruggeri
• Opihr – Spices of the Orient Gin
• Orange Zest
• Rose Petal (Fine Food Specialist)

Tasting Notes

Aroma – “Your aroma will be taken around the world, with fresh zesty orange skin, subtle red rose petals, with wild, exotic, Indian and eastern spices, the spices of the world on the aroma.” 

Flavour – “Delicate, soft expression of exotic spices, orange notes, stinging nettles and exotic spices closing off the experience.”

Blooming Flower Cocktail

• Ruggeri
• Bloom – Jasmin & Rose Gin
• Nurtured in Norfolk – Pansy Edible Flowers

Tasting Notes

Aroma – “A scent to fall in love with, just like lovely floral perfume, pansy flowers, purple floral, and ripe white pears on the aroma.”

Flavour – “A soft touch of prominent floral, being led by the Gin, the Sparkling Wine tones down the strength while adding to the floral characters, with rose petals, purple floral, jasmine and rosemary on the palate.”

From the Herbal Garden Cocktail

• Jasmine Monet
• Thomas Darkin Gin

Tasting Notes

Aroma – “Herbal floral notes, thyme, rosemary, jasmine, basil, mint, lettuce, chives, and more on the aroma.”

Flavour – “An expression of herbal characters, with thyme, rosemary and nettles, with notes of yellow floral, freshly cut grass and a green finish.”

Blue-Berry Christmas

• Belaire Bleu Sparkling Wine
• Greenalls Blueberry Gin

Tasting Notes

Aroma – “Succulent blueberries, blueberry syrup, blueberry candy, blueberry slush puppie.”

Flavour – “Smooth blueberries, blueberry laces, blueberry sweets, blueberry slush puppie on the palate.”

As to which Cocktails to create with the rest of the spirits, I leave that up to you, get creative, enjoy yourself, try something different, or improve on what you already like, by crafting some Gin Fizz Cocktails each day on the countdown to Christmas, the season is yours to enjoy!

We wish you a very Merry Christmas from Glass of Bubbly and Neat & Shaken