Chocolate Gets a New Best Friend

Chocolate goes hand-in-hand with lots of things. It’s a common bedfellow with peanut butter, vanilla, mint, and as of this season in Chicago, tequila apparently. The zesty agave spirit, which serves to balance out chocolate’s innate richness, is popping up on cocktail lists all over town with a chocolatey accent, as crafty mixologists use cocoa in bold new ways. And just in time for National Hot Chocolate Day on January 31, to boot.

At Headquarters Beercade, customers can round out an evening of nostalgic arcade games with some spiked frozen Mexican hot chocolate. The lightly spiced Paletas cocktail is infused with Hornitos Reposado Tequila and served on crushed ice as the perfect bracing beverage for wintry sipping.

LUXBAR’s newly appointed bar manager Stephen Gleich wasted no time putting his stamp on the drink list at the Gold Coast staple. For his new winter menu, he spices things up with his Jalisco Hot Cocoa, featuring hot cocoa, tequila, and chocolate bitters.

If it’s Mexican hot chocolate you crave, it doesn’t get any better than the version at Ay Chiwowa. Created by partner Arturo Gomez, the Mexican Hot Chocolate here is made with whole milk, Abuelita’s brand chocolate, butterscotch, and tequila reposado. It’s an off menu item available upon request, so be sure and ask for the goods.

Tequila and Chartreuse team up for a one-two punch of goodness at Drumbar, where mixologist Alex Renshaw oversees an impressive arsenal of seasonally changing drinks. One notable standout for winter is the Life in Balance, an intoxicating medley of Tromba Tequila, Green Chartreuse, housemade hot chocolate, whipped cream, and cayenne.

Headquarters Beercade
213 W. Institute Place, Chicago
(312) 291-8735
Website

LUXBAR
18 E. Bellevue Place, Chicago
(312) 642-3400
Website

Ay Chiwowa
311 W. Chicago Avenue, Chicago
(312) 643-3200
Website

Drumbar
201 E. Delaware Place, Chicago
(312) 933-4805
Website