THE POUR

Valentine's Day is right around the corner — a time to express your love through food, candy, cards, and drinks. So, play a little music to set the mood and surprise your significant other with dessert and drinks. It beats waiting in line at restaurants and picking from an over-priced menu. Plus, this will let them know you're willing to go the extra mile.

To get you started, here are three Valentine's Day drinks and two easy-to-make desserts that you'll fall in love with.

When you hear “spicy,” you might think of dried poblano peppers and the cuisine of the Southwestern United States. But, if you’re looking for a spicy twist on your cocktails, look no further than Ancho Reyes chile liqueur.

Made using — no surprise here — ancho chile, those very sun-dried poblano peppers, this liqueur is not for the faint of heart. If you want to cozy up in the cold weather and survive the season with the spark of desert heat, you need cocktails with chile liqueur. So buckle up, set up your home bar, and explore these devilishly delicious cocktails you can make using the unique and fiery Ancho Reyes chile liqueur.

You’ve probably tried tea, essential oils, medication, sleep, and chicken soup—but have you tried alcohol remedies for colds?

It may sound like the liquor lobby’s covert marketing pitch, but if you take a second to consider it, you might find more than you expect from the power of alcohol for not just cooking, mixing, and drinking, but also remedying a cold. As we transition into chilly weather and the coughs and sniffles that often accompany it, be prepared with knowledge—and alcohol—to combat sickness.

One obvious note before you seek sweet healing through spirits: consuming more than a small to moderate amount of alcohol while you’re sick will make things worse, so be smart about what you consume in your illness.

What is that pungent odor? Why is there a strange film floating on the surface of this beverage? How does something taste so sharp yet so good?

These are the questions you’ve asked if you’ve seen, smelled, or consumed kombucha. No longer confined to the weird science experiment in the corner of your outdoorsy-and-all-natural-type friend’s kitchen, this beverage is making bold moves on its own and in a burgeoning intersection: kombucha cocktails.

It’s Friday afternoon and your awkward coworker is the only other person in the office because everyone else is “up at the lake.”

(That’s how you know it’s summer in Minnesota.)

But just because you’re not at a cabin or camping in the woods doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy classic summer fun and flavors. Text your friends, plan an evening at a park by the lake, or even in your backyard. Then break out the secret weapon your cabin-loving coworkers forgot at home: campfire cocktail recipes.

S’mores around the campfire is admittedly summer’s prime eating ritual. The simplicity of melty chocolate, crunchy graham crackers, and gooey marshmallows toasted over the fire is hard to beat.

Minnesota is a golfer's state. In fact, we consistently rank at or near the top in golfer participation in the U.S. What does this have to do with cocktails? Plenty — maybe. Minnesota's unofficial official cocktail, The Bootleg, or Bootlegger Drink, has been a favorite of the state's country club set for decades.

Just like summer, Cinco de Mayo is right around the corner. Celebrate May 5th and the anniversary of the Mexican Army’s victory over the French with a quintessential Mexican drink- the margarita! The key to this cocktail is simplicity, good ingredients, and balance.

It might shock you if you’re not prepared for it, especially if you’ve never even heard of egg cocktails before. But this is creamy, textured good news for your home bartending or the next time you’re out and want to order something off — or rather on — the egg-beaten path.

Here is everything you'll need to know about egg cocktails and three delicious recipes to try.

Can you feel it? The days are slowly getting longer, and you’re inevitably getting thirstier, which is a good problem to have when you realize how many refreshing elderflower cocktails you can enjoy with the change of seasons.

When some people think of March, they think of St. Patrick's Day, daylight saving time, or spring break. For avid basketball fans, March means madness — college basketball madness that starts with brackets and finishes with one team cutting down the nets.

We may have already set our brackets, but we thought we'd up the ante with some spirited drinks to enjoy while you watch the madness unfold. Here are our picks, inspired by the host cities and top seeds in each of the tournament's regional finals.