The traditional hot toddy formula is simple:  Start with a hot cup of tea, add lemon and honey, then a bit of whiskey.  This is certain to make even the worst cold feel just a little better.

The toddy is believed to have been invented in Scotland sometime in the eighteenth century.  It was a popular cocktail during the cold months and especially around Christmas and is the Scotch alternative to its rum-based relative, grog but the toddy was not invented in Scotland.

The toddy as we know it comes from India. The Hindi word “taddy” means “beverage made from fermented palm sap.” By 1786, “taddy” was officially defined by the East India Company as “beverage made of alcoholic liquor with hot water, sugar, and spices.”  As EIC employees came home, they started asking publicans to pour hot water into Scotch whiskey to make “taddies.”  Soon, Indian tea replaced the hot water and a few spices were blended in and the modern “toddy” was much more like the one we enjoy today.

Doctors, often frustrated in their inability to treat the common cold, began incorporating Indian Spices into their prescriptions.  Before long, the toddy, was de rigour as the cure for the common cold.“If your child begins to snuffle occasionally, to have red eyes, or a little deafness; if his skin feels dry and hot, and his breath is feverish — you have now an opportunity of doing your work much faster than ever before,” the unnamed writer states, all you need do is “Ply him well with hot stimulating drinks, of which hot toddy is the best.”  Today, we know that any hot drink with citrus and honey can help ease cough and cold symptoms—it doesn’t necessarily need to include any alcohol.  In the 18th Century alcohol was prescribed to numb pain.  The aromatics from the spices tend to help clear the sinuses and then, of course, hot water has a decongestant effect.  It really is a great cure for just feeling cruddy.

Classic Hot Toddy Recipe

• 1 Gil (1 ½ ounces) whiskey
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon (½ ounce) fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup boiling water
• 1 teaspoon black tea
• Cinnamon stick, star anise, and/or lemon slice for garnish

Add tea to water and allow to steep for 3-5 minutes. Stir in honey. Add spirits, and lemon juice, and stir to combine.

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