Whatever holiday you celebrate, Down House has the proper cocktail to keep you warm and resilient against family onslaught. In business since May, the funky Heights coffee and cocktail bar's first seasonal menu updates 70 percent of the drinks, with plenty of attention paid to the classics side as well as the seasonals. (For you foodies, Down House now has delectable dinner service, as well).

The winter drink selections are rum and cactus-spirit heavy, sure to warm you up on a cold (for Houston) night.

Seasonal Sippables

Breaking away from the boozier selections as a standout in our mind is the Pumpkin Phosphate — a light, refreshing alcoholic pumpkin soda of sorts, it's made using Extinct Acid Phosphate, a souring agent that was once used to make soda.

Expecting pumpkin cocktails to come with a certain thickness, this airy option was a pleasant alternative that still comes with all the warm, recognizable spice. You can feel the allspice at the back of your throat and at the base of your nose after the first swallow, but in a familiar, not overwhelming sort of way. This is one of the few options you could drink all night without falling off your barstool.

Next on our to-try list is the Wrong Flight from Albuquerque, which takes on a brilliant fall rust color due to the carrot juice inside. This cocktail treads the thin line between easy and complex without straying too far into either territory. A nod to jet fuel cocktails, it employs several high-alcohol-content rums (including Cruzan Blackstrap and Demerara Lemon Hart 151) and one of my all-time favorite liqueurs — Becherovka.

The drink takes its name from a combined reference to Bugs Bunny and its serious rum content: Instead of "left turn at Albuquerque," one of Bugs' most famous catchphrases, the jet fuel tradition inspired a tweak to wrong flight — and this cocktail will surely make you soar.

Less friendly is the Sotol Cooler, made with Sotol — a Desert Spoon-based spirit akin to mezcal — Campari and tonic with grenadine and fresh lime. The bitterness of the Campari peeks through, which is probably a plus for some, but not my favorite. The Sotol, however, is smoky and sublime when mellowed with sweet grenadine. It's interesting, to be sure, if not the most drinkable option on the menu. It's sure to spark intellectual cocktail curiosity, if that's what you're into.

The Normandy Tart is another notable for its surprising lemon-y layer. Made with Calvados, it's a thick and frothy drink with predictable winter warmth from allspice, cinnamon and apple, but with an unexpected citrus underpinning that's delightful.

Updated Classics

New to the Classics side of the menu are the Chinese Cocktail, the King Cole (named for the famed bar at New York's St. Regis hotel) and the Leave it to Me, No. 1.

Of these, the Chinese Cocktail was our obvious favorite — not only of the classics but of the night. Garnished with a seared orange peel, it warms your mouth instantly with Creole Shrubb, the rich man's Grand Marnier. It's heavy enough to leave a slight film on top and on your lips, and reminded me of smoking cloves cigarettes when I was 19 and didn't know better. You lick your lips all night to keep the taste.

The warmth of this cocktail is its most notable characteristic — the Shrubb takes you straight from the bar on a cold night to the Caribbean.

The King Cole, in contrast, has a serious bite. Inspired by the St. Regis' original house cocktail, this blend of rye whiskey and Fernet Branca garnished with pineapple and orange is for the serious drinker. (Remember, I'm not big on bitters).

Leave it to Me, No. 1 is a pretty pink citrusy thing made with apricot brandy, Plymouth gin, French vermouth and grenadine with a flamed lemon peel garnish. Served in a sweet little angular glass (all of Down House's glassware is lovely) it's one straight from Savoy.

I finished the night with an old hat — the classic Milk Punch. Served in a tall glass with a 3-inch foam head, this cinnamon and nutmeg-garnished drink was all milk and honey and brandy — perfect for putting yourself to bed.