The holidays are all about spending quality time with family and friends while indulging in delicious meals and drinks, and a festive favorite is the Christmas cocktail (or mocktail). Looking for the perfect holiday drink idea? We’ve got you covered. Keep reading for our Christmas cocktail recipes (they’ll be a holiday favorite!) and everything you need to create them.

Christmas Cocktail Recipes

Whether you are looking for mocktails or cocktails, you’ll enjoy these Christmas drinks.

Christmas Bellini

What You’ll Need:

• 1/2 cup unsweetened cranberry juice
• 1/2 cup unsweetened pomegranate juice
• 1 cup sugar
• 3–4 ounces Prosecco or champagne (substitute seltzer for a mocktail)
• 1 lime
• Handful of whole cranberries (for garnish)
• Small pot
• Jar or bowl
• Champagne flute
• Liquid measuring cup
• Toothpick

Place your small pot over medium heat and stir in cranberry juice, pomegranate juice, and sugar. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, turn the heat down to low and let simmer for 5 minutes while stirring. Make sure that the sugar has completely dissolved. This creates a simple syrup for your Bellini. Place syrup in a jar or bowl and let it cool completely before using.

Measure out roughly 1 ounce of the simple syrup and pour into your flute. Top the syrup with 3–4 ounces of seltzer water (for a mocktail) or Prosecco (for a Christmas cocktail). Cut your lime into wedges. Squeeze one wedge into the glass. Take another wedge of the lime and cut a thin slice. Add the lime slice and a few cranberries to the toothpick to garnish your Bellini.

Sparkling Apple Cider

What You’ll Need:

• 2 tablespoons cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 cup apple cider
• Splash of champagne (or soda water)
• Champagne flute
• Small bowl

In the small bowl, mix the cinnamon and sugar together. Wet the top of your champagne flute with water and dip the rim into the cinnamon and sugar mixture. Add a half cup of apple cider to the champagne flute. Add a splash of soda water to the cider to add carbonation, roughly filling the glass three quarters of the way full. For a Christmas cocktail, replace the soda water with champagne and enjoy!

White Chocolate Peppermint Martini

What You’ll Need:

• 1 candy cane
• White chocolate syrup
• 1 1/2 ounces white chocolate liqueur
• 1 1/2 ounces vanilla vodka
• 1 ounce crème de cacao
• 1 ounce half-and-half
• 1/2 ounce peppermint schnapps
• 2 small bowls
• Martini glass
• Cocktail shaker
• Muddler
• Handful of ice
• Jigger

Take your candy cane and crush it into pieces into a small bowl using the muddler. Pour the chocolate syrup into a separate bowl and dip the rim of the martini glass in it. Then dip the rim of the glass into the crushed candy cane pieces.

Take your cocktail shaker and put a handful of ice inside. Use a jigger to measure the white chocolate liqueur, vanilla vodka, crème de cacao, half-and-half, and peppermint schnapps. Pour into the cocktail shaker. Shake until mixed, and strain the cocktail into your martini glass. Enjoy!

Citrus Christmas Cocktail

What You'll Need:

• 2 ounces vodka
• 1/2 ounce elderflower liqueur
• 1/3 cup blood orange juice (or squeezed clementine juice)
• 1 can of ginger beer
• 1 pomegranate (for garnish)
• Mint (for garnish)
• Handful of ice
• Jigger

Take a handful of ice and fill a cocktail glass. Measure out and pour in the vodka, elderflower liqueur, and orange juice. Top the drink off by adding in ginger beer into the cocktail glass. Garnish with pomegranate and mint and enjoy!

Christmas Cocktail Essentials

Glassware: Glassware is essential for any Christmas cocktail. From mixed drinks to wine, having the right glass will enhance your cocktail (or mocktail) experience. For lightly carbonated cocktails, opt for a collins or highball glass. For a martini, opt for a coupe glass. To learn more about glassware, read our guide Cocktail Glasses & Bar Glassware: Everything You Need to Know.

Cocktail Shaker: A cocktail shaker is a must-have for mixing ingredients. Add your drink ingredients and ice (if necessary), and shake to mix. Most shakers come with a built-in strainer to keep unnecessary ingredients (like pulp) from getting into your cocktail.

Jigger: A jigger has an hourglass shape with both sides used to measure shots. One side of the jigger measures a 1 ounce shot and the other can be used to measure smaller shots. Many jiggers will have a fill line so you know when to stop pouring.

Muddler: A muddler is used to gently mash ingredients in the bottom of a glass (like berries, lime, or mint) to release the flavors of each ingredient into your cocktail. It can also be used to break up sugar cubes. Muddlers are commonly used to mash ingredients for mojitos or mint juleps.

Stirrers: Cocktail stirrers are designed to mix or stir cocktails by hand. Their handles are long, letting you stir in a high glass or cocktail shaker comfortably. Most cocktail stirrers are made of stainless steel, so they won’t affect the flavors of the cocktail.

Blender: Love a frozen drink? A blender is essential if you are making drinks that need crushed ice, like a daiquiri or frozen margarita. It blends ice easily and is great if you love to make smoothies too!