Holiday Cocktails (and Mocktails) to Reward Your Hustle ‘n Bustle

Welcome to your one-stop shop for all holiday cocktails and mocktails… 

No one hustles and bustles like the Fresh Fam… especially during the holiday season. So we’d like to officially reward you with a roundup of our best festive and flavourful holiday cocktails.

Kick back, relax, celebrate, be merry, and stay — err — hydrated during the most wonderful time of the year.

1. Blood Orange Gin and Tonic

Blood oranges, which are grown primarily around the Mediterranean and California, are in peak season during the colder months of October through late March/early April. Their partially sweet and slightly tart flavour makes them the perfect star in this citrusy gin and tonic holiday cocktail.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 2 Ounces Gin
• 2 1/2 Ounces Fresh Blood Orange Juice
• 2 Dashes Orange Bitters
• 4 Ounces Tonic Water

Instructions:

1. Fill a glass with ice. Add gin, blood orange juice, and orange bitters.
2. Top with tonic water and stir.
3. Garnish with a blood orange slice before serving.

2. Mint Gin and Tonic

The secret to success is to muddle fresh mint leaves. It only takes a few seconds but makes a world of flavour difference.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 3 Sprigs Mint
• 2 Ounces Gin
• Tonic Water
• Lime Slice, for garnish

Instructions:

1. Strip leaves from 2 sprigs mint and muddle in a glass
2. Fill glass with ice.
3. Add gin and tonic water. Stir, then garnish with remaining sprig mint and lime slice.

3. Moscow Mule

Fun fact: Despite its name and liquor of choice, the Moscow Mule hails from New York City, not Russia.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 2 Ounces Vodka
• 1/2 Ounce Ginger Syrup
• 1 Wedge Fresh Lime
• 1/2 Can Club Soda

Instructions:

1. Pour ginger syrup into a cup over ice. Add vodka and a squeeze of lime.
2. Fill with club soda and stir.

4. Blueberry Cinnamon Old Fashioned

This fruity, cinnamon-spiked cocktail may sound fancy, but we promise it’s simple enough for bartending novices and aficionados alike to master (but shhhhh, your guests don’t need to know that).

Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup Water
• 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 2 Cinnamon Sticks
• 1 oz Whiskey
• 1 oz Blueberry Juice
• 3/4 oz Cinnamon Simple Syrup
• 2 Dashes Angostura Bitters
• Sparkling Water
• Frozen Blueberries
• Rosemary Twig
• Ice

Instructions:

1. To make the simple syrup, combine water, sugar, and cinnamon sticks in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then let simmer until slightly thickened, 5-8 minutes. Set aside.
2. Fill glass with ice, then add whiskey, blueberry juice, simple syrup, and bitters. Top with sparkling water and garnish with frozen blueberries and rosemary twig.

5. Grapefruit Prosecco

Prosecco, AKA the Italian version of champagne, is the perfect bubbly drink to help ring in the new year. We’re combining it with Campari and grapefruit for a zing of refreshing citrus.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• Coarse Sugar, for rim of glass
• 1 1/2 Ounces (1 Shot) Campari
• 1 1/2 Ounces (1 Shot) Grapefruit Juice
• Ice
• Prosecco
• Grapefruit Twist, for garnish

Instructions:

1. Dip glass rim in a bowl of water, then into a bowl of sugar so it sticks.
2. Combine Campari and grapefruit juice in a cocktail mixer with ice.
3. Shake well and pour into two glasses with ice.
4. Top with Prosecco and garnish with a grapefruit twist.

6. Spiced Braeburn Apple Gin

Apples are to cinnamon what bananas are to peanut butter. Matches made in heaven — and cocktails are no exception. Get the recipe here (along with a slew of other apple recipes we love).

7. Rosemary Blackberry Mocktail

Lemon and rosemary are the perfect accompaniments to the fruity flavours of this mocktail. It’s blended with lemon juice, which means no one will see the needle-shaped leaves, but everyone will be wondering what the secret ingredient is.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 3/4 Cup Frozen Blackberries (plus more for garnish)
• 1/4 Cup Frozen Blueberries (plus more for garnish)
• 4 Teaspoons Sugar Syrup
• 2 Ounces Lemon Juice
• 1 Sprig Rosemary
• Sparkling Water
• Blackberries, for garnish
• Ice

Instructions:

1. Place glasses in the freezer to chill.
2. Add frozen blackberries, blueberries, and sugar syrup in a pot with a splash of water. Simmer about 15 minutes.
3. Add mixture to a blender and blend until smooth. Strain with a sieve and set aside to let cool.
4. Meanwhile, rinse blender, then add lemon juice and rosemary sprig. Blend, then strain.
5. Remove glasses from freezer and fill halfway with crushed ice. Pour in lemon mixture, then sparkling water. Pour blackberry mixture on top, and garnish with berries.

8. Pomegranate Mocktail

You’ve likely come across pomegranate seeds as a garnish on sweet and savoury dishes alike, but have you ever tried them in a mocktail? It’s a total game changer — especially when paired with tart lemon juice, sweet simple syrup, and a splash of bubbly tonic water.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 3 1/2 Ounces Lemon Juice
• 4 Teaspoons Sugar Syrup
• 2 Ounces Pomegranate Juice
• Tonic Water
• Ice

Instructions:

1. Add lemon juice, sugar syrup, and pomegranate juice into a jug and stir.
2. Pour into glasses over ice and top with tonic water.

9. Paloma Cocktail

Since one grapefruit cocktail wasn’t enough, we dreamed up this tequila – grapefruit – lemonade dream-come-true, also known as a Paloma.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 2 Ounces Tequila
• 2 1/2 Ounces Fresh Grapefruit Juice
• Lemonade
• Ice
• Grapefruit Slice, for garnish

Instructions:

1. Add tequila, grapefruit juice, and lemonade into a glass over ice.
2. Garnish with a grapefruit slice.

10. Apple Orange Punch

Apple +  orange + lemon = fruity, triple threat. Combined with warming spices like cinnamon, cloves, and star anise, this mocktail has the holidays written all over it.

Serves 1

Ingredients:

• 3.5 oz Fruit Tea
• 3.5 oz Apple Juice
• 3.5 oz Orange Juice
• 1 Cinnamon Stick
• Lemon Slice
• 2 Cloves (optional)
• 1 Star Anise (optional)

Instructions:

1. Prepare tea as you normally would, then combine all ingredients (except lemon slices, cloves, and star anise) in a pan.
2. Bring to a boil, then let simmer about 10 minutes.
3. Pour and decorate with lemon slice, cloves, and star anise if using.

11. Peach Bellini

Our favourite fuzzy-skinned fruits may be in season in the summer months, but that doesn’t stop us from enjoying ’em in juice (and cocktail) form all year long.

Ingredients:

• Chilled Brut Sparkling Wine
• Fresh Peach Juice

Instructions:

1. Pour sparkling wine into a glass, then top with peach juice.

12. Clementine Mulled Wine

Hustle and bustle through the holidays with this spiced mulled wine recipe that screams ‘festive’.

Looking to warm up with more than holiday cocktails this season? Look no further than our easy-as-pie pumpkin spice latte