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5 Easy-to-Make Brunch Drink Ideas to Wow Your Friends Next Time You Host
If breakfast is the most important meal of the day, then brunch is surely the most important meal of the week! No scoffing down Weetabix to catch the bus to the office, or picking from what’s left of the salad bar, a weekend brunch reservation is the perfect medicine to lift the spirit after a hard week of work. And, if there’s one thing we know how to do here at Jameson, it’s lift spirits.
Yes, we have the inside scoop on how to turn brunch from your favourite weekend meal to your favourite weekend get-together. The secret? Why brunch cocktails, of course!
When it comes to brunch, we get so focused on the food that we forget the other half of the fun is the drinks! Whether you’re hosting brunch or eating out with friends, pairing the perfect cocktail with your open-faced BLT, eggs florentine or avocado on toast is the final step in a fully formed (and delightfully fun) brunch.
Below is a menu of eggcellent late-morning cocktails recipes to recreate at home. So, without further ado, let’s get cracking!
And no, we can’t promise this is the last of the egg puns.
1. Offer the Warmth of an Irish Coffee
Even the best brunches can be a little early for some people. When some of us need a little pick-me-up, it calls for coffee. A coffee that does this in more ways than one? Even better.
A Jameson Irish Coffee is a wonderfully warm morning cocktail. Perfect with any late breakfast, Irish Coffee brings the smells of cosy mornings to the brunch table.
A Jameson Irish Coffee is easy to make and even easier to dress up, Irish coffee is so versatile. Don’t forget you can make a decaf Irish coffee for those friends who are already wide awake, you know, “morning people.”
2. Serve Fast but Flavourful Strawberry Fields
The pre-made Strawberry Fields is a fast, easy and great-tasting brunch cocktail to bring to a brunch morning at a friend’s place. Save your host the hassle of trying to cook and make drinks by bottling a batch of Strawberry Fields mix to serve over ice with a measure of Jameson when you arrive. This fruity number goes great with strawberries, raspberries, cherries, and other summer fruits. As brunch cocktail recipes go, we can’t think of anything more suited to a group gathering!
3. Go Classic with a Whiskey Sour
The classic for a reason. The Whiskey Sour is quick to make and looks stunning in a coupe or tumbler. Not only is it delicious, it’s one of the few cocktails that are simple to learn but, makes you look like a seasoned mixologist to your friends. A whiskey sour is one of the few brunch cocktails where preparing the drink, also means preparing brunch itself. A cocktail made with egg whites means leftover egg yolks. It’s usually a real scramble to do two things at once, but in this case, you can use your leftover egg yolks to put into an omelet! How’s that for sustainability? Find out how to make a classic Jameson whiskey sour here… as for a good omelet recipe, you’re on your own.
4. Break Tradition with a Bloody Molly
Bloody Mary? Never heard of her.
Bloody Molly? She’s one of our favourites.
A common hair-of-the-dog cocktail, a Bloody Molly brings the Jameson touch to the classic Bloody Mary cocktail and is ideal for when an Irish Coffee is a bit too sweet for the moment.
In truth, a Bloody Molly isn’t a remedy drink by any means, but a full-force cocktail for those who adore strong flavours. Tart, sharp, hot, slightly salty and oh-so-smooth (just like you, cutie), the Bloody Molly is probably the closest drink to a brunch food order, you can get.
Not only do the flavours make the Bloody Molly a standout cocktail, but so too do the garnishes. Celery, olives, gherkins, pickled onions, limes, lemons, cherry tomatoes, or prawns, a Bloody Molly’s garnish options are a literal smorgasbord of choice. Find out how to build your own Bloody Molly, complete with garnishes of your choice here.
Or, for more creative cocktail garnish ideas, check out our blog.
5. Go Bright and Bold with an Irish Wolfhound
So, you want to make some alcoholic brunch drinks, but unfortunately, you only have a bottle of irresistibly smooth and perfectly crafted Jameson Black Barrel to work with. We know. Sometimes life just isn’t fair. Luckily, there is a cocktail for just such a disastrous scenario.
The grapefruit juice and ginger beer bonanza that is the Irish Wolfhound cocktail is here to save your sorry excuse for an early lunch. Rimmed with an aromatic sea breeze of smokey salt, this beautiful pink cocktail is perfectly balanced, between sweet, salty and tart. Not to mention it’s jam-packed full of vitamin C to help keep those pesky bi-annual colds away. The Irish Wolfhound is the Black Barrel cocktail that can’t be beaten when it comes to brunch drinks.
How to Display a Drink Station for a Brunch?
Having a drinks station at brunch is a great way to organise yourself while making cocktails for guests, or letting your guests make their own brunch cocktails. So, what drink station ideas should you be thinking about when it comes to brunch cocktails?
First things first. You’ll need the right tools for the job. Log on to the Midleton Distillery Collection barware collection to pick up a cocktail builders’ belt for your drink transformation station.
Next, choose a location. Not far from the party, close to where the food is usually served is best. You can decide to put your drinks station in the upstairs bathroom, but we recommend against it. It’s sort of awkward and honestly, unsanitary.
With the location fixed, it’s time to get organised. Group your most used items together. Your whiskey, your various juices, your simple syrup. Those drink recipes won’t be written down when you’re serving, so you must have what you use most in front of you, rather than looking elsewhere. This goes for your guests too. Straws, stirrers, extra ice and appropriate glasses like these ones here, should all be freely available and within easy reach.
Once you have served up all your guests, don’t forget to take a picture. Serving brunch drinks can be a full-on task. Show the people of the Internet how hard you work to treat your friends to a good time!
What do Men Drink at Brunch?
In a sentence? Anything they want. All of the brunch cocktail recipes provided above are great cocktails for anyone to enjoy as brunch alcoholic drinks. In saying that, we do have a few cocktail recipes that might go down particularly well with the fellas. The Irish Mule (lime juice, Jameson Original, ginger beer) or an IPA Shandy (Jameson IPA Edition, IPA beer, lemon juice) are two mighty cocktails for men who brunch. Not to say the ladies wouldn’t be impressed with these cocktails either…
What is a Good Morning Alcoholic Drink?
Firstly, we want to highlight that a brunch cocktail should be seen as an occasional treat and not a regular way to start the day. Before having a morning alcoholic drink, consider what other activities may require your full attention throughout the day and drink sensibly.
Now, of course, all the above cocktails are great for brunch but, for those earlier starts, a little coffee can go a long way. A Jameson Irish Coffee would be our recommended go-to, to get someone in the mood for a great day ahead.
What Can I Drink Instead of a Mimosa?
So, Mimosa’s aren’t your thing, eh? Don’t worry. You’re not the first to see sparkling wine and orange juice as a bit… well… meh, and you won’t be the last.
A Whiskey Smash is the ideal substitute as something refreshing but not overly sweet or citrusy. Made with lemon, whiskey and mint, a Whiskey Smash is as easy to make as a Mimosa and twice as tasty. And, before you come after us, we know a Mimosa is traditionally made with champagne and orange juice, and not sparkling wine but, unless you are brunching at The Ritz (lucky you, by the way), it’s sparkling wine in the glass. You just don’t want to admit it.
What Drink to Bring to a Brunch?
We’ve already mentioned Strawberry Fields is a great alcoholic drink to bring to brunch. However, there are plenty of simple and easy drinks on the Jameson website to make and bring to any sort of occasion, be it brunch, baby showers or birthdays. Check them out here.
Whether you’re mixing up a classic Irish Coffee or shaking up a refreshing Jameson Smash, make sure to reach for a bottle of Jameson. It’s not just a whiskey; it’s your ticket to becoming the most talked-about brunch host among your friends!