For A Spirited Evening, Make It A Cocktail & Costume Party
A great Halloween party has equal parts ambiance, costumes and libation. Narrowing down the right cocktail for the job can be a bit of a headache with hundreds of mixers and alcohol to choose from. Below is a list of five great Halloween drink concoctions that are sure to please any pallet. Great for any guest, be it the easy-to-satisfy beer drinker or the refined whiskey sipper, these cocktails will spice up your party, and with holiday drink presentation, the ambiance, too.
Photo via Skyy Vodka
The Black Widow
If vodka is your forte then this cocktail is sure to get the job done. Leaning on the sweeter side, this spooky drink calls for the following:
- Crème de cassis
- Vodka
- Triple Sec
- Fresh lemon juice
- Pomegranate juice
- Licorice strips for pizazz
To begin, take one part of all the above ingredients, with the exception of the vodka and cassis, of which you’ll need three and two parts, respectively. Throw all these bad boys into a shaker and you’ll have enough Black Widow for two. But don’t stop here; add some licorice strips to hang over the rim of the glass to give the illusion of a big scary spider just waiting to jump out at anyone who dares to drink.
Ginger Brew
- Bourbon
- Orange juice
- A lemon
- Ginger ale
- Olives
To whip up one of these concoctions you’ll need about two ounces of your desired bourbon, three ounces of orange juice and a squeeze from a half of a lemon all poured into one shaker. After the ingredients are properly shaken, top the drink with a ginger ale floater and garnish with some olives.
Spooky Tip: If you have access to some large, pitted green olives and a little bit of creativity, you can cut out some great “pumpkin-esque” features into them and drop them on top. This addition is sure to get your guests buzzing.
The Black Death
Beer-based cocktails are becoming more and more popular as mixologists experiment with what a great beer can do in the cocktail creation process. The Black Death is a simple take on this idea. It calls for:
- A great, dark porter
- Gin of choice
Pour your porter of choice into a pint glass and drop a shot glass full of your best gin into the mix. The beer should foam a bit on top creating a nice layered effect and great flavor contrast for those who wish to try this drink.
Devil’s Whiskers
This drink gets its name from the orange twists garnish that is placed in the glass at the end. While some of the ingredients in here might initially turn you away, this cocktail begs to be made and your guests in Halloween costumes will be sure to agree. To mix this one up you will need:
- Gin
- Sweet vermouth
- Dry vermouth
- Orange juice
- Grand Marnier
- Bitters
Take a half ounce of the gin, sweet vermouth, dry vermouth and orange juice and combine it with two teaspoons of Grand Marnier and a teaspoon of bitters. Mix these together in a shaker and pour into a martini glass. Peel an orange into thin, circular strips and place them on the rim. Now you have yourself a tasty, gin-based Halloween treat.
The Green Slime
This cocktail is visually unappealing, but works with the Halloween motif! With the whipped egg white and crushed mint leaves, guest might need a little coaxing to drink this one, but once they do, they’ll be asking just how you pulled this one off. To get this one together you will need:
- Dark rum
- Mint leaves
- Spiced cordial syrup (Fee Brother’s works great)
- 1 egg white
You’ve probably been just dying to muddle something for your Halloween party and now here’s your chance. Take about seven mint leaves a half part of syrup and muddle them together, making sure to thoroughly crush those little leaves. Put about two parts rum into your muddle mixture and add the egg white. Shake these ingredients together and pour it out into a martini glass. You’ll have a delicious, foamy rum cocktail and the mint leaves add a nice spooky touch as they float to the top.
Spooky Pizazz
Want to dress up your Halloween libations even further? Consider really making those drinks pop with the addition of some of these touches that can really impress your guests.
- Adding dry ice to any beverage turns it into a bubbly smoky drink, really adding to the ambiance.
- If your glasses are clear you can take a paint pen or glass marker and etch on some spooky pumpkin faces to give the illusion of drinking out of a jack-o-lantern.
- Corn syrup and red food coloring mixed together can be a great addition to a martini glass rim, just make sure to pop them in the freezer after you coat the glass to make sure they stay hard and firm for a bit longer.
What about you? What have you whipped up for your past Halloween bashes? Have any secrets and tips of your own to share? I’d love to hear from you!
Author Bio: An avid writer, father, and foodie, Richard Bracke loves to try out new restaurants in Charlotte, where he blogs for the website EZ Cater. He especially enjoys Spanish tapas accompanied by a nice Catalan Cava.
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