Happy weekend, and welcome back to 3-Ingredient Happy Hour, the weekly drink column featuring super simple yet delicious libations. Today we are kicking off the weekend with a drink that gets the job done. I am talking about the boilermaker.

I don’t know if I can speak for everyone, but 2019 was a year that required--nay, demanded--I consume more than a few cocktails. This was bad news for my liver, but great news for my readers, as all that drinking resulted in a lot of cocktail-related pondering and testing, as well as some truly great cocktail hacks.

What a week it has been. A lot going on. I don’t know how you like to relax, but if your weekend plans involve catching up on the news and political discourse, might I suggest you make yourself this delicious peach-mint cocktail before logging on.

The screwdriver is not a bad drink, but it isn’t a great drink. The combination of orange juice and vodka isn’t hard to swallow, but I’ve never been like, “You know what I really crave right now? A freakin’ screwdriver.”

A properly made Irish coffee is a beautiful thing, but it’s also a hot thing, which isn't always what you want. To make a cold boozy coffee, you just need cold coffee and a little bit of sweetened condensed milk.

Happy weekend, everyone, and welcome back to 3-Ingredient Happy Hour, the weekly drink column featuring super-simple yet delicious libations. Claire is in LA filming new food content, which means it’s time for another guest post.

This week, we’re making the most A.A. Newton cocktail of all time: One that contains both cheap beer and Campari.

Peach liqueur is a tough sell. With a cloying, trite image and lolly-like flavour, it requires a delicate hand. (A sense of whimsy doesn’t hurt either.) But if you can press the reset button in your brain and forget any negative Sex on the Beach-related nightmares, you’ll find that it works quite well in certain situations, especially if those situations involve sour, funky shrubs.

I have been celebrating my birthday since Sunday, and it has involved a not insignificant amount of drinking. I’ve had margaritas in Mississippi, a Viuex Carré at Carousel Bar and a really dank grasshopper here in Portland. And now — in typical Leo fashion — I’m asking you to continue celebrating with me with a few of my favourite things.

Alcohol is not known for its sleep-promoting qualities. In fact, nothing ensures I have a terrible, unrestful night like a parade of high-proof cocktails. But a little bit of alcohol — a scoach — can calm the mind and relax the muscles. Pair that with melatonin-rich sour cherry juice (and maybe a glass or two of water), and you have a nice little cocktail to help you unwind.

My favourite nightcap is 30ml or so of Fernet, over ice, with a pinch of salt, but that drink signals the end of a good evening, not the start (or even the middle) of one. I want to be salty all night long — from beginning to the bitter end — so I decided to take that flavour profile and make it into a martini.

The Americano is an Italian drink named for its popularity with American expats during Prohibition.

It’s Negroni Week — at least, for a few more days. If you aren't familiar with this week, a bunch of different bartenders at a bunch of different bars put their “spin” on the classic cocktail to raise money for charities around the world. It’s nice.

Happy winter solstice, cats and kittens! Today is not only the shortest day of the year, but the official beginning of winter. But perhaps you're missing the brightness of summer. There's a cocktail for that.

Wine spritzers have a hokey reputation but, like most things dismissed as “girly”, they’re damn delicious. They’re also a great, low-ish proof beverage for when you want to sip on something without ruining yourself for the next day.

I drink most of my martinis sitting in dark bars, trying to avoid small talk centred around my tattoos. Even so, there's no reason why you can't enjoy this drink in the comfort of your own home.

I am a lazy person, which means I need a steady stream of easy-to-make, but not too boozy cocktails to keep me calm. Gin and tonic works for a bit, but guzzling gin, no matter how diluted, can get one into trouble.

If you took part in the recent discourse — or shall we say “spritzcourse” — surrounding a certain beverage, you now know that some people do not enjoy the Aperol spritz, and feel it “drinks like a Capri Sun after soccer practice on a hot day”, but “not in a good way”.

Some pretty decent recipes can be found on the backs of boxes, bottles, cans and other packaging, and the piña colada recipe that’s printed on cans La Preferida cream of coconut is a good example of the genre.

I am not against simply sipping on an amaro or five, as they are usually so full of flavour that they don’t need much. I also enjoy them with a little carbonated water. But my amaro-focused worldview sometimes makes me forget that these sweet and herbal little numbers go great in full-fledged cocktails, particularly those made with darker spirits.