If you’re looking to share holiday cheer, this goblet is big enough to split among at least a few friends.
Wine etc
T he newly renovated Thunderbird Lounge complements its throwback style with some cool classic cocktails you rarely see these days.
Pizzeria Monzu softens the jet-fuel kick of grappa with the sugar of muddled grapes, a nice dose of citrus and the rose and lavender hints of the aperitivo Italicus. Don’t be deceived, however; the Grape Thymes cocktail packs a serious punch.
While Park MGM’s new Juniper Cocktail Lounge takes its name from its selection of more than 75 gins, its signature cocktail program goes much deeper. For proof, witness the No Judging, which blends the high-octane French liqueur Green Chartreuse with citrus and fires up mint for garnish.
What makes the Electric Butterfly from downtown’s new Eureka electric isn’t the shocking purple color, which comes courtesy of butterfly pea tea. It’s actually housed in the “buzz button,” an edible Szechuan flower that mixologists use to shock your taste buds, literally changing the way you experience flavors. Make sure to try a few sips before you bite down on it so you can appreciate the difference in taste afterward.
The signature Mr. Tang cocktail of the MGM Grand’s new high-end Chinese restaurant China Tang, named after its founder Sir David Tang, is a play on the 19th-century Improved Brandy Cocktail.
The first thing you notice about this bubbly drink — a signature cocktail of Hawthorn Grill inside the JW Marriott — is the way the dry Champagne contrasts the sweet berries, playing to opposite ends of your palate without intermingling much. The bitters also offer a slight, but significant, hint of citrus on the nose in the Raspberry Royalle.
Leave it to SLS Las Vegas’ Monkey Bar, which is decorated with photos of impeccably dressed gorillas and apes, to class up the cliched minty/chocolatey holiday drink with the Peppermint Bliss cocktail
While serious soju aficionados drink the spirit straight, the flavored variety used here lends itself to cocktails intended to conjure the Korean grain beverage’s spirit, if not its intensity.
While the espresso offers a welcome touch of bitterness, the French Kiss Martini at The Palm is really more a dessert than a cocktail.
Sake can be tricky to work with in cocktail forms, which may be why many mixologists prefer to use flavored versions specifically designed for them.
