Books

8 Drinks From Books To Warm You Up This Fall

by Julia Seales

Beverages and books somehow belong together. Like Elizabeth and Darcy, Anne and Gilbert, or Jane and Rochester, beverages and books are an iconic pairing. Of course, if it's a book-themed beverage, this pairing becomes even better. Fortunately, there are plenty of options for great beverages based on what your favorite characters drink. Have you ever been reading a book and wished that you could reach through the pages and grab a cheery, warm Butterbeer? You're in luck: other readers feel the same way, and some of them have posted recipes or ideas that you can DIY or buy.

Autumn is truly the best season to try these beverages. After all, it's still warm enough to drink something cold, but the chill in the air also makes it the perfect time to grab a hot beverage. Plus, there are plenty of amazing, autumn-themed mugs to hold your chosen beverage. If you've always wanted to clink glasses with literary characters at a fictional bar, this is a close second to that beautiful dream.

While you still can't reach through the pages and bring your favorite characters into this world (sadly), you can make one of the following beverages to pair with your favorite book this autumn.

1. Butterbeer from the Harry Potter series

Ingredients needed:

  • Milk
  • Butter
  • Brown sugar
  • Butterscotch topping
  • Cream soda

It's easy to find recipes for this Harry Potter staple. Of course, at the amusement parks, it's served cold, but true Harry Potter fans know that in the books it's served warm. Find the full recipe here from The Tiptoe Fairy.

2. Pumpkin Juice from the Harry Potter series

Ingredients needed:

  • Pumpkin
  • Red apple
  • Meyer lemon
  • Ginger

Harry Potter is a treasure trove for fall drinks. Everyone loves Butterbeer, but let's not forget about pumpkin juice. This was served at all the feasts of Hogwarts, and you won't regret mixing up a pitcher for your own Halloween festivities. Find the full recipe here from Popsugar (and pick up some Pumpkin Juice labels here from Dsloeffel on Etsy).

3. Pan-Galactic Gargleblaster from The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy

Ingredients needed:

  • Preserved lemons
  • Gin
  • Ginger beer
  • Ice
  • Habanero

Beeblebrox advises in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy that one should "never drink more than two Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters unless you are a thirty ton mega elephant with bronchial pneumonia." Since the original recipe contains ingredients that are difficult to obtain (such as one measure of water from the seas of Santraginus V), this revised version from Instructables will have to do.

4. Frobscottle from The BFG

Ingredients needed:

  • Sugar
  • Water
  • Cream of tartar
  • 1 vanilla bean
  • Raspberry essence
  • Green food dye
  • Soda
  • Pop rocks

Sophie and the BFG drink this in Roald Dahl children's classic, The BFG. In the book, Dahl writes that it's "sweet and refreshing. It tasted of vanilla and cream, with just the faintest trace of raspberries on the edge of the flavour. And the bubbles with wonderful. Sophie could actually feel them bouncing and bursting all around her tummy." This recipe from Food in Literature matches the description quite well.

5. Belgian Hot Chocolate from Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot novels

Ingredients needed:

  • Milk
  • Quality dark Belgian chocolate
  • Quality milk chocolate
  • Salt
  • Vanilla
  • Whipped cream
  • Dash of cinnamon
  • Sugar

Agatha Christie's famous detective Hercule Poirot was obsessed with Belgian hot chocolate, and you should be too. It's the perfect drink to pair with a great mystery novel this autumn. Find the full recipe here from Busy Creating Memories.

6. Barliman's Best from The Lord of the Rings

This beer is served at the Prancing Pony, but if you can't escape to Bree any time soon, print up some custom Barliman's Best labels and affix them to your favorite brew. This is also perfect if you're not much of a chef, but you still want to enjoy a literary-themed beverage. Pair with a Tolkien book and enjoy!

7. "Raspberry Cordial" AKA Red Currant Wine from Anne of Green Gables

Anne accidentally gets her BFF Diana drunk when she mistakes currant wine for raspberry cordial in the iconic Anne of Green Gables scene. You can actually buy red currant wine... just make sure you tell your friends, or you'll be sent over to apologize to their parents.

8. Tea from.... well, any book

Booked Weekend, $12.99, MugCountry on Etsy

From Jane Austen to Alice in Wonderland to Harry Potter, to everything in between, tea is a literary staple. You can never go wrong with tea.

Images: Warner Bros (1), Buena Vista Pictures (1), Walt Disney Studios (1), ITV (1), New Line Cinema (2), CBC (1)