Hot Toddy

Aaaaah, there's nothing quite like a hot toddy to take the chill off your bones and bring the heat to a cold winter night. A pub house stable in England and Ireland, this delicious citrus-infused, sweet whisky concoction is originally thought to hail from a British-controlled India back in the 1600's with the name evolving from the Hindi word "taddy" - a translation of a local drink made with fermented palm sap. When you look at the contents you can certainly see how this might be the case - whisky from the old country with a blend of local fruit and spices, honey or sugar and you are done. An alternative theory is that an Irish doctor by the name of Robert Bentley Todd took to prescribing something similar to his patients to recover from coughs and colds. Maybe it's this theory that has made many people still today believe in the medicinal powers of this simple yet delicious cocktail. Treated as a go-to cure for things like the common cold, Victoria Moore - author of 'How to Drink' describes the Hot toddy as "vitamin C for health, the honey to soothe, the alcohol to numb". Now we definitely aren't under the illusion that this humble hot drink is a cure for the annual winter bugs that do the rounds, but we can see why it might provide a little warmth and comfort on a cold winter night.