As the festive season approaches, the scent of pine fills the air, twinkling lights brighten every corner, and festive gatherings are in full swing. What better way to toast to the season than with a delicious Christmas cocktail?
Whether you’re hosting a holiday party, curling up by the fire, or simply enjoying a quiet evening with loved ones, a well-crafted drink can elevate the mood and add extra cheer to your celebrations. From spiced warm punches to festive martinis, these holiday-inspired cocktails are perfect for sipping, sharing, and creating lasting memories.
So, raise a glass and get ready to explore the delightful world of Christmas cocktails – where every sip is a toast to the most wonderful time of the year…
Never Say Die Winter Old Fashioned
- 50ml Never Say Die Small Batch
- 10ml winter syrup
- 2 dashes Angostura bitters.
Method: Add all ingredients to a rocks glass and fill with cubed ice or an ice block. Stir until well chilled and diluted, top up the ice if needed and garnish with a smouldering cinnamon stick.
To make your winter syrup: You’ll need one cinnamon stick, 5 cloves, 2 strips of orange peel, 1 cup demerara sugar, 1/2 cup of water. OR – buy off the shelf
Break the cinnamon stick up and add it and the cloves to a small frying pan and heat gently until the aroma of the spices becomes strong. Add the sugar, water and orange peel and bring to the boil while stirring to dissolve the sugar. Once all the sugar is dissolved and the liquid has come to a boil, strain the spices and peel out of the liquid, and allow it to cool before bottling. To extend the shelf life of the syrup add 25ml of Never Say Die.
Blackberry Sake Gimlet
- 100ml Samurai Sake
- 30ml Elderflower Liqueur
- 1 tbsp Lime
- 1 sprig Rosemary
- 3 Blackberries
To Garnish
- 2 Blackberries
- 1 sprig Rosemary
Method: Muddle three blackberries with a sprig of rosemary in a cocktail shaker. Add Samurai Sake, elderflower liqueur, lime and ice, then shake until well combined. Strain into a gimlet glass and garnish with the final two blackberries speared with a sprig of rosemary.
Never Day Die Epsom Derby
- 40ml Never Say Die Small Batch
- 30ml pink grapefruit juice
- 15ml honey syrup*
- 8 – 10 mint leaves
Method: Add all ingredients to your cocktail shaker and shake hard with cubed ice. Fine strain into a chilled coupe and garnish with a single mint leaf floating on the surface of the drink.
Spiced Cranberry & Jazz Apples Sangria
For the spiced syrup
- 85ml water
- 50g granulated sugar
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 6 cardamom pods
- 5 whole black peppercorns
- 5 whole cloves
- 1 whole star anise
Method: In a small saucepan, combine water, sugar, and whole spices. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce the heat to medium low and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and leave the syrup to steep and cool to room temperature, at least 10 minutes. Once cooled, strain the syrup into a bowl or jar, discarding all of the spices except the cinnamon sticks.
For the sangria
- 1 Jazz Apple, quartered, cored and diced
- 1 medium orange, sliced into wedges
- 100g fresh or frozen cranberries
- 750ml bottle dry red wine (Spanish Grenache or Pinot Noir work best)
- 90ml brandy
- Juice from 3 oranges (approx. 190ml)
- 120ml unsweetened cranberry or pomegranate juice
- Ice, to serve
- Rosemary sprigs, to garnish (optional)
Method: To a large pitcher, add the apple, orange, and cranberries. Pour in the red wine, brandy, orange juice, cranberry juice, and spiced syrup, and stir everything together well. Add the cinnamon sticks reserved from making the spiced syrup. Cover the pitcher and refrigerate the sangria for 2-4 hours or overnight. Remove the pitcher from the fridge 1-2 hours and let the sangria come to room temperature before serving. Serve over ice, garnished with a sprig of rosemary.
Never Say Die Chestnut Highball
- 40ml Never Say Die Small Batch
- 10ml creme de chataigne (chestnut liqueur)
- 2 dashes orange bitters
- Soda water to top
Method: Pour all ingredients into a highball glass and fill with cubed ice. Top with soda water and give a quick stir to mix. Garnish with an orange twist.
Cider & Mezcal Margarita
- 50ml Zignum Reposado mezcal
- 75ml apple cider
- 25ml orange liqueur
- 1 lime wedge
- apple slices for garnish
To rim the glasses
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- Lime wedges
Method: Stir the cinnamon, sugar and salt. Rub the rim of the glass with a lime wedge, then dip the rim into the cinnamon, sugar and salt combination. Fill the glass with ice. Fill a shaker with ice. Pour in the mezcal, orange liqueur and apple cider. Squeeze in the lime wedge then stir thoroughly to combine. Strain into the rimmed cocktail glass. Garnish with apple slices.
The DV Pink 75
- 30ml Seedlip Grove
- 20ml fresh lemon juice
- 50ml Della Vite Zero
- 20ml 1:1 sugar syrup (one part water, one part sugar. Heat the water first – don’t boil, then add the sugar and allow to cool)
Method: Shake ingredients with ice, and strain into your favourite martini glass. Top with Della Vite Zero and garnish with skewered juicy raspberries dusted with icing sugar for extra festive vibes.
Matcha Basil Smash
- 15ml La Matcha Liqueur
- 45ml Etsu Gin
- 10ml fresh lemon juice
- 10ml basil syrup
- Ice
Method: Add the gin, lemon juice, basil syrup, and matcha powder to a shaker. Fill with ice and shake well. Strain into a glass with ice and garnish with basil leaves.
Sparkling Cosmo
- 25ml premium vodka
- 10ml Cointreau
- 25ml cranberry syrup
- 10ml fresh lime juice
- 50ml Della Vite DOC Treviso Rosé Prosecco
Method: Shake and strain ingredients, top with Prosecco. Garnish with lemon wedge.
Matcha Sour
- 15ml La Matcha Liqueur
- 45ml Tottori Bourbon Cask
- 20ml fresh lemon juice
- 15ml maple syrup or sugar syrup
- Egg white or 30 ml aquafaba
- Ice
Method: Add the whisky, lemon juice, syrup, matcha powder, egg white or aquafaba to a shaker and shake without ice. Add ice and shake again. Strain into an old fashioned glass with ice and garnish with a lemon peel.
DV Blancmange
- 25ml cognac
- 40ml almond milk
- 10ml maple syrup
- 1 Maraschino cherry
- 25ml Della Vite Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G
Method: Mix the cognac, almond milk and maple syrup in a cocktail shaker, pour into a tumbler over cubed ice. Top with Della Vite, and garnish with a Maraschino cherry.
Sake & Sugar Plum Punch
- 150ml Samurai Sake
- 100ml Ginger Wine
- 10ml Agave Syrup
- 1 tbsp Lime Juice
- 200 ml Sugar Plum Puree (Recipe Below)
- Dash of Soda Water
For the Sugar Plum Puree
- 12 ripe plums
- 2 tbsp Granulated Sugar
Method: Begin by preparing the sugar plum puree. Halve and de-stone the plums. Place on a lined baking sheet, flesh-side-up, and sprinkle with sugar. Bake at 200C for 20 minutes. Allow to cool slightly and transfer to a food processor. Pulse to a fine puree then strain through a fine sieve. To prepare the punch, add all ingredients other than the soda water to a shaker with ice. Shake well to combine. Pour into glasses and top with a dash of soda water.
DV Sgroppino
- 1 scoop of lemon sorbet
- 1 destoned fresh cherry
- 20ml raspberry & lemon cordial (we like Belvoir)
- 75ml Della Vite Prosecco Superiore D.O.C.G
Method: Add one scoop of sorbet to a martini glass, top with Della Vite, garnish with a lush fresh cherry and dribble over some cordial.
Sugar, Rum, Cherry
- 50ml Karisimbi Spiced Rum
- 3 Dashes The Bitter Truth Black Cherry Bitters
- 1 tsp Demerara Sugar
Method: Add The Bitter Truth Cherry Bitters and demerara sugar to a rocks glass with a large ice cube and stir. Pour in the rum and stir for 30 seconds until well combined and chilled.
Salted Peach G&T Spritz
- 1 x Mix Up Gin & Tonic can
- 8 slices of tinned peaches
- A pinch of smoked sea salt
- 100ml fresh grapefruit juice
- 4 slices of grapefruit peel
Method: In a mixing glass/shaker, muddle the peaches with the smoked sea salt before adding the grapefruit juice and Mix Up Gin & Tonic. Double strain into 4 martini glasses filled with cubed ice and garnish with a twist of grapefruit peel.
White Bloody Mary
- 100ml La Tomato Liqueur
- 500g Ripe Tomatoes
- 2 sticks celery
- 50 ml Apple Juice
- 15ml Lemon Juice
- 6 dashes Tabasco (or more to taste) dashes Worcestershire Sauce
Method: Place the tomatoes, celery, apple juice, lemon juice and tabasco in a blender. Blitz until smooth then strain through a clean kitchen tower or cheesecloth. (Allow the juice to drip slowly, this may take a few hours. Do not stir). Divide the clear tomato consommé between two glasses, then top each glass with 50ml of La Tomato and ice. Finish with 3 dashes of Worcestershire sauce.
Vodka, Apple & Rosemary Spritz
- 2 x cans Mix Up Vodka Lime & Lemonade
- 100ml apple cordial
- 2 x fresh limes
- 4 x rosemary sprigs
Method: Fill 4 highball glasses with cubed ice, followed by 25ml apple cordial and 15ml lime juice in each vessel. Top with half a can Mix Up Vodka Lime & Lemonade and stir for 30 seconds before garnishing each drink with a sprig of Rosemary.
Strawberry & Lychee Pink Gin & Lemonade Spritz
- 2 cans of Mix Up Pink Gin & Diet Lemonade
- 100ml Lychee juice (Rubicon)
- 14 (one punnet) fresh strawberries
Method: In a cocktail shaker/mixing glass, muddle 12 strawberries with 100ml Lychee Juice, double strain and pour evenly into 4 tumbler glasses filled with cubed ice. Top with Mix Up Pink Gin & Diet Lemonade, and garnish each glass with a slice of fresh strawberry