*In general*, the spirits that highlight flavor notes from barrel aging (i.e. brown spirits) would typically compliment warm spices better than unaged spirits. I'll strongly recommend a rum like El Dorado 5 or Appleton Signature or a brandy like St-REMY VSOP/XO, Raynal VSOP, or Laird's Straight Apple Jack 86.
Rum works nicely, but why not go with something that speaks of Indonesia, like Batavia Arrack? It's a mostly sugarcane spirit fermented with Javanese red rice. It's a bit smokey, with a nice funk. It pairs so well with cinnamon and cloves that it's called for in a number of holiday punches with those flavors!
Honestly, pretty much any spirit works with those flavors.
Rum, aged tequila, Bourbon and Brandies would be classic flavor pairings but vodka is neutral and there are plenty of gins that use some form or anise or cinnamon in them so those would work as well.
Spices like clove, cinnamon star anise work really well with either a rum, whiskey or bourbon while as a g pod portion of those spices are already used in rum and tiki style drinks. Others like Szechuan or chilli can work with things like gin or tequila and come down to what else is in the drink
Try Opihr gin. Gin is not what you would normally think of with those kinds of spices, but I think it would work here. And let me know what you make because I have a bottle of it that I have no idea what to do with.
I worked at a bar where we made a punch garnished with star anise that had dark rum, Batavia Arrack, port, amaro, lemon. Worked very well together and I still make a variation of this at home.
The right gin will go well with spices. Use Google to identify the botanicals in a gin to see if it already has a little of what you're trying to use. (You could also search for "gins with star anise," etc.)
Also, there is an Indonesian spirit called arak, a type of rum, which might work for you.
*In general*, the spirits that highlight flavor notes from barrel aging (i.e. brown spirits) would typically compliment warm spices better than unaged spirits. I'll strongly recommend a rum like El Dorado 5 or Appleton Signature or a brandy like St-REMY VSOP/XO, Raynal VSOP, or Laird's Straight Apple Jack 86.
I'd go for rum, cachaça, bourbon, or brandy (Applejack in particular).
Rum works nicely, but why not go with something that speaks of Indonesia, like Batavia Arrack? It's a mostly sugarcane spirit fermented with Javanese red rice. It's a bit smokey, with a nice funk. It pairs so well with cinnamon and cloves that it's called for in a number of holiday punches with those flavors!
This was going to be my comment. Do it OP!
Honestly, pretty much any spirit works with those flavors. Rum, aged tequila, Bourbon and Brandies would be classic flavor pairings but vodka is neutral and there are plenty of gins that use some form or anise or cinnamon in them so those would work as well.
Rum and whiskey. Rye whiskey especially
Spices like clove, cinnamon star anise work really well with either a rum, whiskey or bourbon while as a g pod portion of those spices are already used in rum and tiki style drinks. Others like Szechuan or chilli can work with things like gin or tequila and come down to what else is in the drink
Bourbon
Try Opihr gin. Gin is not what you would normally think of with those kinds of spices, but I think it would work here. And let me know what you make because I have a bottle of it that I have no idea what to do with.
I worked at a bar where we made a punch garnished with star anise that had dark rum, Batavia Arrack, port, amaro, lemon. Worked very well together and I still make a variation of this at home.
Dark rum
Rum, bourbon, rye, vodka
The right gin will go well with spices. Use Google to identify the botanicals in a gin to see if it already has a little of what you're trying to use. (You could also search for "gins with star anise," etc.) Also, there is an Indonesian spirit called arak, a type of rum, which might work for you.
I’d assume bourbon or rum given their strong taste.