Mountain Grog

Mountain grog is the unfussy cousin of the more theatrical winter drinks. There is no cream, no batter, no elaborate spice mix, just rum, water, lemon and sugar with a little spice on the side. That simplicity is its charm. After a long, cold day, it is the drink that does exactly what you need without any decoration.

A drink with a long history

Grog has been keeping people warm for almost three hundred years, originally as a naval ration of rum cut with water to keep sailors functional. The mountain version takes the same logic and applies it to ski huts and alpine cabins. The structure is identical: a base spirit, hot water, citrus, sweetener. What changes is the rum, which is darker and richer in the alpine version, and the addition of warming spices that suit the cold. A glass of this fits comfortably alongside something more aromatic like Hot Apple Gin when you are hosting a group with different tastes.

Making it well

The order matters more than you might expect. Dissolving the sugar in a little hot water first means it does not gather at the bottom of the glass. Adding the rum and lemon next lets you taste the balance before you dilute it further. Only then do you top up with the rest of the hot water, which should be around 80°C rather than fully boiling.

Fresh lemon juice is essential. Bottled juice has a flat, slightly bitter character that the heat exaggerates, and there is not enough else in the drink to hide it. The cinnamon stick and cloves infuse slowly as you sip, so the drink actually gets more aromatic toward the bottom of the glass. Some people add a thin slice of orange alongside the lemon, which softens the edges and adds a faint sweetness without changing the character of the drink.