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3 WAYS TO EXPERIMENT WITH BAILEYS THIS CHRISTMAS

Baileys and the festive season often go hand in hand… but before you start pouring this creamy liqueur over ice, let’s look at a few more creative ways to use the world’s favourite cream liqueur to elevate your cocktails and tips this festive season.

WHY BAILEYS?

Made using aged Irish whiskey woven with fresh Irish dairy cream, cocoa and vanilla, the result is a smooth creamy liqueur with distinct chocolatey notes.

With these delicious flavours, it is no wonder that often our go to serve for Baileys is over ice, but we may be missing an opportunity if this is the only serve we offer to our customers.

With a rise in customers looking for low ABV cocktails and late afternoon and after dinner cocktails, Baileys, with an ABV of 17% and indulgent dessert-like flavours, could be the answer you are looking for.

So let’s take a look at three ways you can get creative with this famous Irish cream liqueur this festive season!

GET CREATIVE WITH YOUR PRESENTATION

With cocktails and drink creations becoming increasingly tailored for digital audiences as much as local audiences, the rise of social media and handheld photography has caused big shifts in customer demand and drink ideation.The festive period offers the perfect chance to push the boundaries with ‘shareable’ drinks that are big on presentation and flavour. Using signature serves like this in your venue can also increase the chances of more visitors, a valuable asset at one of the most competitive times of the year.

Baileys Reindeer

Don’t let glassware hold you back - get creative and have some fun!

There are opportunities to create engaging, indulgent and playful drinks that will encourage people to share with friends online.

Have a go at this Reindeer recipe – perfect for the festive season!

50ml Baileys Original Irish Cream
25 ml Cold milk
Whipped Cream
Sprinkles
Ice
Chocolate Reindeer

Method

Pour Baileys Original Irish cream and cold milk in a cocktail shaker

Add ice and shake for 15 seconds

Strain into a Chocolate Reindeer

Top it off with whipped cream and chocolate sprinkles

Alcohol content: 6.5g per serve

The Treat Tray

A treat tray is another fantastic way of engaging your customer by involving them in their own drink creation. By providing a wide choice of garnishes alongside a serve, customers can personalise their garnish selection, increasing the chances of satisfaction.

The treat tray can make your serve highly visual and be a stand out signature serve for you venue!

AFTER-DINNER DELIGHT

During the festive season, in particular, customers are more open to opting for more premium drinks and boosting their experience. Step forward after-dinner drinks – the perfect serves to make the most of this opportunity!

Baileys and Hot Chocolate

The cocoa layers make Baileys a perfect sweet digestif that can be added to coffee or hot chocolate – perfect to offer at the end of a meal. You can add various indulgent garnishes such as marshmallows and chocolate flakes to give it that wow factor!

Recipe

50ml Baileys Original Irish Cream

100ml Hot chocolate

Fresh cream

Chocolate flakes

Marshmallows

METHOD

Alcohol content: 6.3g per serve

Baileys over ice cream

Research has found that 43% of consumers agree (Source: Boozy desert: Mintel Report (“Dessert toppings get more sophisticated ,” 2016) that an alcohol infused dessert is more appealing and more sophisticated than a normal dessert. So it is no surprise that Baileys has been a long term favourite amongst dessert chefs.

A great way to start experimenting with your serves is to collaborate with your venue's kitchen and see what ingredients you can share.

This festive season why not offer your guests Baileys over ice cream as dessert. The chocolate notes of Baileys work really well with the ice cream and add a bit of luxury to the end of a meal.

Recipe

2 Scoops quality vanilla ice cream

50ml Baileys Original Irish Cream

Method

Alcohol content: 6.7g per serve

Liquid Tiramisu

Another serve to offer your customers as an alternative to dessert is this luxurious Liquid Tiramisu. The espresso, vanilla and mascarpone work brilliantly with those chocolatey and creamy notes in Baileys.

Recipe

50ml Baileys
70ml Mascarpone
10ml Espresso
10ml Sugar syrup

Method

Alcohol content: 6.5g per serve

UP YOUR GARNISH GAME

Garnishes are a brilliant way to explore the depth of flavour to Baileys and are also a great way to elevate your serves, impress your guests and easily give a serve a seasonal twist.

When deciding what garnish to use in your serve you can look to complement the flavours and textures in the cocktail or sometimes even contrast these notes.

Chocolate Luxe Martini

The creamy texture of Baileys also brings added depth to drink creations, with a chance to draw a contrast between it by using very different, but complimentary ingredients.

Sweet rims aren’t often used in cocktails, but can provide great texture and flavour contrasts to Baileys, when using things like crushed nuts, chilli or cocoa powder.

Have a go at making this Chocolate Luxe Martini recipe with an added chocolate and nut rim for added wow factor!

Recipe

50ml Baileys Chocolat Luxe

25ml Espresso

25ml Smirnoff Vodka

Ice cubes

Chocolate sauce and nuts for rim

Toasted marshmallow for garnish

Method

Alcohol content: 14.1g per serve

SHOW US YOUR SERVES!

We would love to see your Baileys creations this festive season! Tag @Baileys and @DiageoBarAcademy on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

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