Christmas Punch Up

If you are hosting a Christmas party this week, you are sure to want to impress your guests with a variety of classy cocktails. However, if you have a large group of people to cater for, making individual cocktails can be difficult and time consuming. Save yourself some time to mingle, by preparing some Christmas punches, and let you guests serve themselves.

Christmas Punch

This cocktail does exactly what it says on the tin. Pomegranate and Cranberry Juice give it a festive flavour, while Vodka and Cointreau will warm the guests up when they arrive out of the frosty weather. Simply combine sixteen ounces pomegranate juice, eight ounces cranberry juice, eight ounces vodka, and eight ounces Cointreau with eight ounces chilled club soda, four ounces fresh lemon juice and four ounces sugar syrup in a bowl. Garnish with cranberries and lemon slices, and give your guests cocktail glasses filled with ice so they can pour their own.

Warm Cider and Rum Punch

Apple cider and dark rum are offset by lots and lots of fruit! This warm punch is perfect for a winter party and will have your guests going back for refills again and again, so be sure to make plenty as it takes a while to prepare! Put 64 ounces of apple cider in a pot, along with a thinly sliced apple, a thinly sliced orange, two cinnamon sticks and a one-inch piece of fresh, peeled ginger, and bring to the boil over a high heat. Allow it to simmer for two hours, before removing from the heat and stirring in sixteen ounces of rum. Transfer to your punch bowl and watch it be devoured!

Champagne Holiday Punch

If you really want to impress your guests this Christmas, this sparkling punch is sure to do the trick. Made for the most discerning of drinkers, this adds a touch of class to a cocktail party. Mix twelve ounces Genever with four ounces of Creole Shrubb, six ounces fresh lemon juice, four ounces of sugar syrup and ten dashes of Angostura Bitters in a bowl and then put into the refrigerator. Leave to chill for at least two hours, before adding four ounces Champagne and eight ounces Club Soda. Add plenty of ice and garnish with star anise pods and pineapple slices. Delicious.

Kids Christmas Punch

Obviously Christmas is all about the kids, and this non-alcoholic punch ensures they are not left out of the festivities. Mix 60g white sugar in a bowl with a litre of cranberry juice, 500ml pineapple juice, and two or three tablespoons almond extract. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours and then stir in two litres of ginger ale to serve.

Happy Christmas Cocktails!