‘Tis the season for family, friends and giving, but that can be a little stressful for some. While we often joke that alcohol makes family gatherings more tolerable, a holiday themed drink can certainly make any holiday get-together more festive.

Moose Milk is a traditional military concoction, typically made for New Years Levée. In colonial times Levée guests were treated to wine and cheeses from the homeland. Wines did not travel well during the long ocean voyage to Canada; so, to make the cloudy and somewhat sour wine more palatable, it was doctored with alcohol and spices, and heated. The concoction came to be known as “Le Sang du Caribou”, or Moose Blood.

Under British Colonial rule, many of the customs of French Canada were retained but, in the case of “Le Sang du Caribou”, whisky, which traveled better, was substituted as the basic ingredient. This was then mixed with goat’s milk, and flavoured with nutmeg and cinnamon to produce an Anglicized version called “Moose Milk”. Today’s version of Moose Milk, in addition to whisky (or rum) and spices, uses a combination of egg-nog and ice-cream and sometimes an additional alcoholic refinement or two.

There are many Moose Milk recipes that vary greatly but if you’ve got a big gathering, here’s the one we use. If the weather is cold, you can always put it outside to stay cool as, with all that alcohol, it won’t freeze!

INGREDIENTS:

40oz Lamb’s Dark Rum
20oz Kahlua
20oz Vodka
20oz Disaronno
4L Egg Nog
4L creamy vanilla ice cream

DIRECTIONS:

Sprinkle with nutmeg and cinnamon once it’s mixed. Serves a small crowd (6-10) and is very tasty!

We have an annual party on our street every December 23rd and it’s a Moose Milk party. Brings together all the neighbours for a fun time during the season.

Happy holidays to you and yours!