WINTER CHEER: 4 Cocktails to Drink Now at Tosca, TBD, Hakkasan, Hog & Rocks

From a beer-laced float, to a South Asian punch, here are four of San Francisco’s best cocktails now:

TOSCA’s “HOUSE CAPPUCCINO”

I was afraid. Very afraid. Though iconic Tosca Cafe was my beloved haven for San Francisco history and Italian singers on the jukebox, its takeover from NY crew and Chef April Bloomfield had me more than a little concerned for the preservation of its historic charms, though its drinks were sorely in need of an upgrade.

Thankfully, handwritten jukebox selections have remained, the decor keeps to its original spirit, and if you can wade through the crowds for a drink, Bar Manager Isaac Shumway has done the remarkable. He’s taken the legendary House Cappuccino – a bland mix of hot chocolate and brandy which I ordered every time I was at Tosca for its historical significance as the drink that soldiered the bar through Prohibition – and he’s turned it into something glorious. Now a proper tribute to its history, the “cappuccino” is vastly improved with Marie Duffau Bas Armagnac, Buffalo Trace Bourbon, organic milk and local Dandelion chocolate.

On a crisp, winter night, I can’t think of a more comforting concoction.

TBD’s PUMPKIN FLOAT

From the talented AQ crew, brand new TBD, just a couple doors down, continues the creative culinary vision of AQ’s dishes but in a comfy-chic, hearthfire setting where the open kitchen’s roaring fire and smoke-inflected dishes happily marry with the extensive draft beer and beer/vermouth/sherry cocktail menu, cleverly named “Loopholes” ($11 each) – instead of the usual “low alcohol” cocktails – by Bar Manager Tim Zohn.

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Though I expected to fall in love with the SF Egg Cream (as an egg cream fan since my NJ youth), lush with sweet sherry, chocolate milk and soda, I was even more smitten with the Pumpkin Float. Fall-spiced house pumpkin soft serve ice cream is doused in Shipyard Pumpkinhead ale. Spiced, creamy, even complex, its the beer lover and the anti-sweet tooth’s dessert.

HAKKASAN’s CUP of GOLD

Bar Manager Jessamine McLellan just released Hakkasan’s late fall/winter cocktail menu, continuing a standard of soft subtlety and refined understatement.

My favorite new addition is the lively Cup of Gold ($15). Sweet-yet-complex Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva Rum is infused with saffron, boosted with herbal depth from Green Chartreuse, while passion fruit and lemon juice ensure stimulating vibrancy. The orange concoction is marked by a purple edible flower as garnish.

Bonus cocktail: riffing off traditional Swedish spiced wine, glögg, 1889 Geijer Glögg is the first glögg liqueur with similar spice but a spirit (vs. wine) base. McLellan’s Spiced Calvados Sour ($15) is a frothy refresher of 1889, fresh pear purée and apple whispers of LeMorton Domfrontais Calvados, balanced by lemon juice and egg white.

HOG & ROCKS’ PANANG PUNCH

Bar Manager Michael Lazar’s whiskey (bourbon, rye) cocktails remain some of the strongest in town, but my current favorite at ever bustling-yet-relaxed Hog & Rocks is Penang Punch ($11). It’s a South Asian-influenced tropical drink, robust with El Dorado 8 year rum, bracingly tart with tamarind and kaffir lime, vigorous from the addition of bitters and chili, tempered with soda. This dynamic beauty goes down all too easy over platters of ham and oysters.