Different cocktails suit different occasions. Piña coladas brimming with crushed ice are built for faraway places, or summer nights in stuffy London, but rarely wanted in the depths of midwinter. Martinis, still cool again, suit evenings in restaurants that look like film sets; champagne stirred with brandy and sugar in old hotels that will forever charm.
Beyond what you're drinking, it's the sense of occasion that truly makes the drink. What's important is considering what's what — and when. Christmas, when you're likely entertaining guests, is made for this sort of thinking.
