Holiday-themed cocktail recipes
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Schenelle Dsouza- 23 minutes read
Schenelle Dsouza
While we’re early on in the week, we’re also very close to the holidays. Here are some great cocktail recipes to bookmark, fresh out of our mixologist’s labs, to give you some festive cheer in the meanwhile! Sit back and dream on.
Akina Boulevardier – Pritam Ghyar, Head Bartender at Privé by Akina
Ingredients
30ml prunes whisky
20ml cinnamon cinzano
20ml Campari
A dash of chocolate bitters
Method
In a mixing glass add ice and top with the above ingredients. Stir and strain over a clear block ice. Granish it with Mulberry sheet
Berryblues – Casilda Misquitta, Bartender, Taftoon
Ingredients
60ml gin
30ml blueberry purée
30ml apple juice
1 sprig of rosemary
10ml lime juice
Method
In a shaker tin add all ingredients along with a fresh sprig of burnt rosemary. Add ice and shake well. Double strain into a chilled crystal coupe glass. Garnish with fresh rosemary sprig.
Chocolate Orange Martini – Naveen Kotyankar, Beverage head, British Brewing Company
Ingredients
30ml white rum
15ml orange liqueur
30ml chocolate sauce
10ml hazelnut syrup
60ml fresh cream
Method
Shake all the ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Strain and pour into a chilled chocolate-rimmed Martini glass. Garnish with a cinnamon stick.
Christmas Carol – Pritam Ghyar, Head Bartender, Akina
Ingredients
50ml homemade spiced matured rum
20ml umeshu
40ml rosé wine
Method
Gently stir all the above ingredients in a mixing glass, then pour over a clear block of ice, in an old-fashioned glass. Topped up with Fresh Homemade Spiced Cranberry foam.
Deli by the Blue Apple Crumble – Darshan Parmar, Operations Manager and Bar Sommelier, Out of The Blue
Ingredients
60ml Makazai Gold Rum
2 tbsp Caramelised Apple
1 Egg white
7ml Champagne sauce
Method
Combine the homegrown Makazai gold rum, caramelised apple sauce and egg white and top off with champagne sauce and a touch of spice and a caramelised apple for garnish.
Eggnog – John Leese, Group Beverage Manager, Bastian Hospitality Pvt. Ltd.
Ingredients
6 egg yolks
180g of sugar
250ml double cream
500ml milk
20ml of golden syrup
Nutmeg / cinnamon / ginger powder
150ml of your chosen spirit. (rum, reposado tequila, bourbon or vsop cognac)
Method
Whisk the egg yolks with sugar to a fluffy texture. Heat milk & double cream to a gentle simmer. Add spices to your flavour preference. Slowly pour the milk in the egg yolks and whisk gently. Put all ingredients back in the pan and bring a low simmer, constantly stirring with a whisk and slowly add alcohol of choice. Strain into bottles. Place in fridge for 4 Hours. Pour in to a glass and enjoy.
Ginger Caramel Eggnog – St. Regis Mumbai
Ingredients
45ml peach-infused rum (Havana club)
15ml Irish cream (Baileys)
30ml butterscotch ice cream
A dash of nutmeg powder
5ml ginger syrup
Method: Blended
Gingerbread Martini – Rakesh Avhad, Bar Head, PCO Cocktail Bar
Ingredients
45ml vodka
15ml amaretto liqueur
7.5ml gingerbread syrup
22.5ml lemon juice
Garnish – candied ginger
Method
Add the vodka, amaretto liqueur, gingerbread syrup and lemon juice to a shaker with ice, and shake until well-chilled. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with candied ginger.
Holly Jolly – Sahil Gangurde, Mixologist, Plural
Ingredients
60ml Segredo white rum
7.5ml elderflower syrup
50ml orange juice
15ml ginger syrup
Top up with soda
Method
In a shaker, add 50 ml of orange juice with 15 ml of ginger syrup with 7.5 ml of elderflower syrup. Shake it well. Pour it over moulded ice in a lens sour glass, and top it up with soda. Garnish with mint and ginger chips
Mezconsin – Vishal Tawde, Bar Supervisor at SAZ American Brasserie
Ingredients
30ml Jack Daniel’s
20ml creyente mezcal
15ml Maraschino cherry liqueur
Garnish – smoke dehydrated apple and maraschino cherry
Method
Combine all the ingredients in a glass full of ice. Stir your cocktail. Garnish with an apple peel and maraschino cherry.
Naughty But Nice – Vaibhav Billava & Aryaman Nair, Bar Team at Neuma
Ingredients
60ml vodka
30ml orange juice fresh
15ml ginger syrup
60ml cranberry juice
10ml fresh lime juice
60ml club soda
Method
Add vodka, orange juice, ginger syrup, lime juice and cranberry juice to a cocktail shaker filled with ice. Shake well to combine. Double strain it, and top up with soda and orange peel as garnish.
Panama Sombrero – Deepak Krishnamurthy, Mixologist, Cafe Panama
Ingredients
30ml 1800 reposado tequila
60ml Bailey’s Irish cream
10ml coffee liqueur
Sprinkle of nutmeg
Demerara sugar to rim
Method
Pour all the ingredients – tequila, Irish cream, and coffee liqueur into a cocktail shaker with ice. Rim a champagne flute with demara sugar. Double strain into the champagne flute. Sprinkle some nutmeg on top. Can be enjoyed over ice in an old-fashioned way as well.
Poached Pear – Jishnu A.J, Head Mixologist, KMC*
Ingredients
1 slice of poached pear
60ml in-house poached pear wine
60ml eggnog
60ml red wine
Method
Take 1 slice of poached pear in a bowl. Add pre-chilled poached pear and eggnog with red wine as a base. Serve with a spoon on the side.
Pomegranate Holiday Cocktail – ITC Grand Central
Ingredients
30ml vodka
30ml Cointreau
Lime juice, pomegranate juice, pomo syrup
Soda
Method
Mix 30 ml vodka and Cointreau each blended well with lime juice, pomegranate juice, and pomo syrup in a shaker. Serve in a hi-ball glass and top it with soda as per palate.
Popcorn Negroni – Kshitij Goel, Beverage Director, W Goa
Ingredients
30ml London Dry Gin
30ml Martini Rosso
30ml Campari
7.5ml popcorn syrup
Method
Pour everything in a mixing glass or in your old fashioned and mix well. Put ice cubes and stir until well diluted. In the meantime get the popcorn ready. It’s ready to be sipped and enjoyed.
Shepard’s Joy – Loci & Toot
Ingredients
60ml bourbon whiskey
60ml spice-infused apple juice
A dash of orange bitter
10ml egg white
5ml rose syrup
Method
Combine all ingredients except egg in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake. Single strain the mixture into another cocktail shaker and add the egg into it. Now shake without the ice vigorously till foamy. Double strain in a margarita glass and serve with garnish with candied star anise.
The Clause – Yogesh Sonawane, Beverage Manager, Sofitel Mumbai BKC
Ingredients
30ml vodka
30ml Irish cream
45ml milkmaid
Method
Pour all the ingredients into a shaker and give a hard shake to the cocktail as the ingredients are on the heavier side. Dip the rim of the AP wine glass in milkmaid and rim the glass with red and white desiccated coconut, then pour the drink into the glass. Pipe the whipped cream on top of the drink using a piping bag.
The Grinch – Yogesh Sonawane, Beverage Manager, Sofitel Mumbai BKC
Ingredients
30ml melon syrup or Midori
45ml gin
30ml apple juice
Method
Pour all ingredients into a shaker, if available do use Midori liqueur. Shake all ingredients thoroughly & double-strain the drink into a chilled martini glass. Garnish the drink with a red cherry to symbolize the Christmas colours of red & green. Garnish with a red cherry.
The Mistletoe – Avril Gonsalves, Bar Manager, Kyma
Ingredients
30ml gin
10ml ginger juice
10ml lime
10ml sugar
30ml sparkling wine
30ml cranberry juice
Method – Shaken
The Untold Paradise Mastiha – OPA Kipos
Ingredients
20ml Mastiha 10ml white chocolate liqueur 120ml Greek wine
Method
Add Mastiha to the mixing jar. Follow this up with the white chocolate liqueur and add Moschofilero greek white wine to enhance the flavours. Add ice into the mixing jar and start stirring with a bar spoon for 15 seconds. Pour it into a frosted glass with a block of ice. Garnish with white chocolate Greek pillar.
Three Wise Gimlets – Chef Arnez Driver, Head Chef, La Pôz Place
Ingredients
60ml Raspberry Infused Gin
60ml Musk Melon Liqueur
60ml Fresh Grapefruit Juice
15ml Lime Juice
15ml Sugar Syrup
Method
Step 1: Homemade Raspberry Infused Gin
Muddle 400 grams of fresh raspberries with a pinch of salt. Add 750ML of your preferred gin and bottle it with the muddled raspberries. Refrigerate for about 24hours. After which, sieve out the raspberries from the cumulation and your Raspberry Infused Gin is ready!
Step 2: The Cocktail
Combine 60ml raspberry infused gin, 60ML fresh grapefruit juice, 15ML freshly-squeezed lime juice, 15ML sugar syrup and vegan egg white, all in a shaker glass. Add ice and shake vigorously for 15 seconds. Now separate the ice to conduct a dry shake for a foamy and smooth texture. Pour it in a cut coupe glass, garnishing it with a consumable rice paper sheet
Tiramisu White Russian – Kevin Rodrigues, Bar Manager at KA Hospitality
Ingredients
60ml aged rum (in mixing glass)
30ml Kahlua
30ml whip topping cream
Method
Add cubed ice, add all ingredients, stir strain and pour the mixture into the serving glass.
Vin Brulé – Arvin Nazareth, Mixologist, Gustoso
Ingredients
150ml red wine
60ml orange juice (fresh preferably)
15ml brandy
1 tsp sugar
2 star anise (1 for garnish)
3 cinnamon stick (1 for garnish)
4 cloves
Pinch of nutmeg
1 orange zest
1 lemon zest
1/2 slice of orange (for garnish)
Method
Put all the ingredients in a sauce pan and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes. Bring to a simmer, not a boil. Remove from heat and strain. Let it cool for about 10 minutes. Garnish with star anise, orange slice and a cinnamon stick. Serve warm.
White Christmas – Rahul Gurav, Head Bartender, Juliette
