I like to entertain in the winter. My favorite gathering is intimate and only has two couples. I have an electric fireplace and it is very cozy in my townhouse.

I prepare for gatherings at my house by cleaning the common areas. I make sure that the bathroom has been wiped down and that there is a roll of toilet paper. I always turn on the electric fireplace before my guests arrive.

There is a flokati rug in front of my electric fireplace. There always seems to be an accumulation of dirt in it. Before I have a gathering, I take my flokati rug outside and shake the dirt out really well.

I have put large pillows around my den. I also have a low table centered in this room. The den is where my electric fireplace is. I like to serve hot alcoholic drinks to my guests while we sit around the electric fireplace.

The electric fireplace is perfect for me and my lifestyle. I do not have the time or the energy to take care of an old fashioned fireplace. The ease of care for my electric fireplace is what sold me on the idea of buying one when I bought it.

I also like the idea that the electric fireplace can either produce heat or not. A heat free electric fireplace is awesome. In the area where I live, sometimes I don’t want heat coming from the electric fireplace.

The last gathering I had I served a drink called the African Queen in front of the electric fireplace. The African Queen is really a coffee drink and my friends all really like coffee. I brewed some nice strong coffee and I set out shot glasses with Amaretto and shot glasses with Triple Sec.

Each person put a shot of Amaretto and a shot of Triple Sec into their mug and then poured in the strong coffee. I had some whipped cream and cherries set out to complete the drink. Everyone liked sitting by the electric fireplace drinking an African Queen.

Another coffee drink that I like to serve by the electric fireplace is the Angie Coffee. My friend Angie came up with this drink and she named it after herself. This is one tough drink, so she recommends only serving two per guest unless you want to have overnight guests.

To make Angie Coffee, you need to mix an ounce of Bailey’s Irish Cream and an ounce of Kahlua with hot coffee. The drink is then topped off with an ounce of Stolichnaya Vodka. I served this to my friends by the electric fireplace and got rave reviews on my Angie Coffee.

I think that by far the best gathering I’ve had by my electric fireplace was the one that I had after a trip to an apple orchard. I brought back some apple juice from the farm and made Warm Apple Sliders for some friends. I heated up one quart of the fresh apple juice in a pot until it cooked down one half.

For each Warm Apple Slider, I poured a half of a cup of the cooked apple juice into a mug. To each mug, I added two ounces of Hennesey Cognac and two ounces of Alize. Alize is a passion fruit flavored liqueur. I served these to my guests sitting on the flokati rug in front of my electric fireplace and told my friends stories about the apple orchard.

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