The Cold Weather Cocktail Roundup: Mulled Hot Apple Cider at the Double Windsor

This holiday season, we at the Windsor Terrace-Kensington Patch are endeavoring to ferret out the borough's finest Cold Weather Drinks, in the name of service journalism. Join us on our quest, and feel free to submit any recommendations in the comments below. 

The Bar: The Double Windsor

The Drink: Mulled Hot Apple Cider

The Verdict: Brewed in a crock pot behind the bar, mulled cider has the upper hand over its toddy-based competition on the basis that its appeal travels far beyond the cup into which its poured: Patrons throughout the barroom will benefit from the cider's magnificent scent, which hits your nose upon walking in the door with the same welcome force that the warmth hits your cold, wind-chapped skin.

Made with Sailor Jerry Spiced Rum left to mingle for hours with apple cider, cinnamon sticks and oranges studded with cloves, the end product is a murky orange liquid served in a tumbler and garnished with a single stir straw.

Rum and I have had a tense relationship ever since we met during my freshman year of college. To be fair, we never interacted at our best—I always found it at room-temperature, pilfered from the Formica counter top of a frat house kitchen, served in a plastic red cup still wet with residue from the Mickey's Malt Liquor it held earlier in the night. For my part, I was probably wearing a shirt made of nylon, so rum probably wasn't entirely impressed with me, either.

I'd sworn off the stuff ever since, so it was with some trepidation that I took my first sip, as a grown-up. My fears were unfounded—this was completely different, and 100 percent less disgusting.

Sweet without being cloying, the drink brought all of the bar's more rustic features into sharp relief. I suddenly noticed a taxidermied raccoon above the bar, hovering greedily over a jug of whiskey, as well as the decorative pumpkins lined up near the taps. No fewer than six patrons were wearing flannel shirts.

While it lacks a fancy cup or elaborate garnishes, six bucks gets you a cup of all the warming you need for the cold days ahead.

You don't even need to like rum.