Need a Christmas tipple to warm you up?
There’s nothing like a few rich, festive Christmas cocktails to get you in the party mood. So add one of the season's best winter coats to your wishlist, get clued up on the online Christmas shopping hacks and sit back with one of these delicious Christmas cocktails that are sure to keep you warm this winter.
Bottoms up!
Christmas cocktails recipes
WHITE MULLED WINE Recipe by Aubaine
Ingredients (serves 6): 1 lemon 1 orange 25g Honey 175g Sugar 3 star anise 6 whole cloves 2 cinnamon Sticks 150ml Water 1 bottle White wine
Method: Cut the lemons and oranges into thin quarter slices and add to a pan, before adding in the honey, sugar and star anise. Next, cut the cinnamon sticks lengthways in half, then in half again, and add to the pan. Heat all the ingredients on the stove until they begin to lightly caramelise, then add the water. Allow to simmer for 5 minutes, add the wine to the pan, and let it simmer for another 5 minutes. Decant into a large soup dish and keep warm. Serve in a latte glass with a star anise and a quarter slice of orange to garnish.
MINCE PIE FREAKSHAKE Recipe by Smith & Sinclair
Ingredients: 200ml Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold 200ml Mince Pie Syrup 500ml milk 6 scoops vanilla ice cream Mince pies (to serve)
Method: To create the mince pie syrup, mix 600g mincemeat in a pan with 200g sugar and 200ml water. Bring to the boil and chill for 30 mins. Then, in a blender, whizz the milk, ice cream, mince pie syrup and Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold. Pour into a mason jar or tall glass. Decorate the glass with syrup and sprinkles. Place mince pies on top of the glass and stab a straw through to drink.
CHAMPAGNE EGGNOG Recipe by Gleneagles
Ingredients: 1 whole egg 50ml cream 10ml crème de cacao blanc 5ml maraschino 120ml champagne Garnish: nutmeg
Method: In to a cocktail shaker, shake all ingredients, excluding the Champagne, then strain into a fizz glass or small wine glass. Once in the glass, fill with champagne until the foam over fills the brim of the glass. Sprinkle grated nutmeg on the top.
THE REINDEER Recipe by Ketel One
Ingredients: 20ml Ketel One Citroen 1tsp fresh ginger juice 12.5ml festive spice syrup (see ingredients and method below) 1tsp fresh lemon juice Champagne
Method: For the festive spice syrup, stir half a cup of hot water and half a cup of sugar in a pan until sugar is dissolved. Add one cracked cinnamon stick, 1/2 a split vanilla stick and one teaspoon of cracked Szechuan peppers. Cover for 15 minutes then strain and cool liquid. Next, shake Ketel One Citroen, juices and syrup with ice and strain into a flute glass. Top with Champagne and garnish with a sprig of holly and a single fresh cherry.
CHRISTMAS CHEER Recipe by Dirty Martini
Ingredients: 20ml Bols Genever 10ml Tanqueray Gin 20ml Cherry Heering Liqueur 20ml Raspberry Syrup 10ml Luxardo Maraschino 20ml Pomegranate Juice 2 dashes Orange Bitters 2 Amarena Cherries on Heart skewer, 1 sprayed gold
Method: Add all ingredients to a Boston tin, then add cubed ice, shake & strain into a chilled glass. Garnish & serve.
SPROUTING GIN FIZZ Recipe by Smith & Sinclair
Ingredients: 50ml Gordon’s gin 2 Tablespoon Lemon Juice 1 Tablespoon Lime Juice 100ml Cranberry Syrup 200ml Cranberry Juice 100ml Honey 100ml Prosecco Caramelised Brussels Sprouts (to serve) Ice
Method: For the cranberry syrup, fry par-boiled Brussels sprouts with a drizzle of honey until caramelised. Take out of the pan and pour 200ml of cranberry juice and 100ml of honey into the same pan. Boil and cool. Next, in a tall glass pour ice, Gordon’s gin, lemon juice, lime juice and the cranberry syrup and stir. Top with Prosecco and garnish with a spike of caramelised Brussels sprouts.
FAIRYTALE OF NEW YORK Recipe by Three Six Six
Ingredients (single serve): 25ml Pogues Irish Whiskey 20ml Ancho Syrup 40ml Orange Shrub 20ml Aperol 3 spays of Cynar
Method: Add all the ingredients into a shaker and shake vigorously. Pour your drink through a strainer and enjoy.
Dickie Fitz
Sam Anyanwu, head barman at Dickie Fitz in London, also has three cocktail recipes for you to try. Make sure to tweet us @marieclaireuk to let us know how you get on.
TIM TAM
Ingredients: 50ml Smirnoff Wild Honey vodka 60ml espresso 25ml Kahlua 2tbsp sugar syrup Ice cubes Tim Tam or similar biscuit
Method: Place a Martini glass in the freezer, then add all the liquid ingredients and ice to a cocktail shaker. Shake then strain into the glass, and finish with the biscuit.
FITZMAS FIZZ
Ingredients: 25ml Amaretto 20ml Vermouth 25ml ginger beer A dash of ginger ale A dash of red wine Ice cubes Cloves A slice of orange A cinnamon stick for garnish.
Method: Add the Amaretto, Vermouth and ginger beer to the shaker, shake with ice and strain into a glass. Top it up with ginger ale and stir, before adding a layer of red wine. Garnish with a slice of orange spiked with cloves and a cinnamon stick.
YOU BEAUT
Ingredients: 25ml Bombay Sapphire gin or green tea-infused gin (to make, put a green tea bag into the Bombay Sapphire bottle the day before) 3 tbsp lemon juice Prosecco or Champagne Lemon peel
Method: Pour the gin and lemon juice into a shaker, shake well with ice and strain into a flute. Top it up with Prosecco or Champagne and stir. Finish with a twist of lemon peel.
