What makes a good winter cocktail? Sometimes it’s a rich, decadent concoction, other times it’s a light bright bubbly drink, or it may even be a warm cocktail whatever you happen to feel like that day. Here are some recipes that incorporate seasonal fruit baking spices and fresh herbs to help you light up those winter nights.

Cranberry in a Pear Tree

1 ½ oz. Wonderbird No. 61 gin

1 oz. Sauvignon blanc

½ oz. Grapefruit juice

¼ oz. Lime juice

Fresh cranberries

Fresh red anjou pear

Rosemary sprigs

Add 4-5 cranberries, one quarter of the pear cubed, half a sprig of rosemary, a ¼ tsp. of sugar and a pinch of salt to a mixing glass. Muddle contents to incorporate. Add spirits and juice, ice and shake. Strain into a rocks glass over ice and garnish with a rosemary sprig.

The mixologists at Wonderbird created this recipe.

WinterSkol 

1 oz. Cold brew concentrate 

1 oz. Bailey’s Irish Cream liqueur

¼ oz. Cinnamon syrup

1 ½ oz. Zacapa No. 23 rum

Add all ingredients to shaker and shake vigorously to create foam (15 seconds).

Strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with 3 espresso beans. Optional: Cover half the top of the glass with a paper towel and dust the other half with a mix of cocoa powder and grated cinnamon. Garnish the plain side of the glass with coffee beans.

Mixologist Lynnette Marrero created this recipe.

Home For The Holidays

1 ½ oz. Iichiko saiten shochu

1 oz. Lemon juice

¾ oz. Chinese 5 spice syrup

¾ oz. Cranberry juice

Mix ingredients together in a cocktail shaker, shake with ice and pour over ice into Mason jar. Garnish with rosemary sprig and spice-dusted cranberries. 

Mixologist Natasha Velez created this recipe.
 

Tiramisu Tini

1 ½ oz. Mr Black cold brew coffee liqueur

1 oz. Diplomatico Exclusiva Reserva rum

¼ oz. Cinnamon syrup

½ oz. Aquavit

Garnish: hand-whipped cream, cocoa powder

Combine liquid ingredients in a shaker over ice. Shake, then strain into a coupe glass. Top with a hand-whipped cream float. Garnish with cocoa powder.

Tony Roehr, bartender at Raised by Wolves in San Diego, created this recipe.

Winter Bourbon Punch

(serves 15)

1/2 bottle Laws San Luis Valley rye whiskey 

¼ gallon Apple cider 

½ cup Lemon juice 

½ cup Sage simple syrup* 

2 bottles Spicy ginger beer 

Combine all ingredients in a punch bowl. Serve.

*For Sage simple syrup: 

1 cup Granulated sugar 

1 cup Water 

½ cup Fresh sage leaves, firmly packed

Bring water to a boil. Add in sugar, stir to dissolve. Add the sage leaves, let the infusion boil for 60 seconds. Remove pan from heat and let steep for 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on how strong you would like it. Pour the cooled syrup through a mesh strainer into an airtight jar or container. May be stored in refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. 

The mixologists at Laws Whiskey House in Denver, CO, created this recipe.

Winter Spice

1 ½ oz. Chambord

1 ½ oz. Jack Daniel’s Fire

1 oz. Fresh cream (or dairy-free alternative)

Raspberries

Place all the ingredients into a shaker tin, along with some ice and shake well. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice and garnish with raspberries.

The mixologists at Chambord created this recipe.

Cranberry Mojito

1 ½ oz. Diplomático Planas rum

1 oz. Cranberry juice 

½ Lime, cut into wedges 

½ oz. Agave nectar 

10 mint leaves 

Muddle lime with mint, agave and rum in a shaker. Fill with ice, shake well, pour into a highball glass, and add cranberry juice. Garnish with fresh cranberries, a lime wedge and a mint sprig. 

The mixologists at Diplomático created this recipe.

Pomegranate Ginger Ranch Water  

2 oz. El Bandido Yankee blanco tequila 

1 oz. Pomegranate juice 

1 oz. Fresh lime juice 

6-8 oz. Topo Chico mineral water

Fresh ginger 

Muddle a large slice or two of ginger, peeled, in a cocktail shaker with lime juice. Crush well to extract juices. Add pomegranate juice and tequila. Shake briefly with ice. Fill a glass with ice then fill about halfway with Topo Chico. Strain the contents of the shaker into glass. Top glass off with more Top Chico. Garnish with pomegranate arils and lime wedges. Stir before sipping.

The mixologists at El Bandido Yankee created this recipe.

Got Apricaught

1 ½ parts Hendrick’s Gin

½ part Blanc vermouth

½ part Apricot liqueur

2 dash Angostura bitters 

Pour all ingredients into a rocks glass over ice. Stir well and garnish with an orange twist, star anise and grated nutmeg.

Hendrick’s Gin East Coast ambassador, Erik Andersson, created this recipe.

Thyme Well Spent

2 oz. Bourbon

½ oz. Lemon juice

½ tsp. Maple syrup

4 oz. Q ginger ale

1 Thyme sprig

1 Lemon peel

Remove the leaves from one sprig of thyme. Muddle the leaves in bottom of mixing glass and add the remaining ingredients except for the ginger ale. Shake and then strain into a large rocks glass. Top with ginger ale and garnish with another thyme sprig.

The mixologists at Q created this recipe.

Roosevelt

1 ½ oz. Dickel Bourbon 

¼ oz. Apple cinnamon ginger maple syrup*

1 dash Aromatic bitters

3 dashes Red gentian bitters

Absinthe (for rinsing glass)

Combine all ingredients and stir. Pour into an absinthe-rinsed small rocks glass. Garnish with an apple chip.

*For Apple cinnamon ginger syrup

8 ½ oz. Apple juice

2 sticks Cinnamon

2 thumbs Ginger, chopped

250g Sugar

125g Maple syrup

Mix all ingredients minus the sugar and maple syrup, bring to a boil and simmer covered for 10 min.; strain and add remaining ingredients 

Smoking Mai Tai

2 oz. Equiano Original rum

1 oz. Fresh lime juice

½ oz. Orgeat syrup

¼ oz. Orange liqueur

¼ oz. Sugar syrup

Place all ingredients in a shaker tin. Add ice and shake vigorously to marry ingredients and chill beverages.  Strain into serving ware.

The mixologists at Equiano created this recipe.

Sage The Date

2 oz. Humboldt Organic vodka 

½ oz. Fresh organic lemon juice 

1 oz. Peach purée

1 oz. Sage simple syrup*

Combine all ingredients in a tin, add ice, shake, and strain into a coupe glass. Garnish with a lemon twist.

*For Sage simple: In small pan, combine 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar. Bring to a simmer, and cook until sugar has dissolved completely. Add 8-10 sage leaves and simmer for 1 minute. Remove from heat and allow leaves to steep for 30 minutes to 1 hour. Strain leaves after cooled. 

The mixologists at Humboldt created this recipe.

Garden of Versailles

2 ½ parts Mumm Napa Brut sparkling wine

1 part Pear nectar

1 part Lillet Blanc 

1 dash Bittermens orange cream citrate

Stir pear nectar, Lillet and orange cream citrate with ice. Strain into a champagne flute and top with Mumm Napa Brut Prestige. Garnish with rosemary.

Mixologist Katie Stryjewski created this recipe.