The best festive cocktails you can make at home this Christmas - from Gin Fizz to Festive Negroni

If you’re staying at home this Christmas, why not make one of these easy festive treats?
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

There is an endless list of amazing places you can go to catch up with your friends over cocktails across the UK.

There is something for everyone, and most bars push the boat out at Christmas with some festive twists on your favourite drink.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

But with an uncertain Christmas ahead of us, with restrictions on socialising coming into effect over the festive period for different parts of the UK, many will be looking to bring the excitement of going out for festive cocktails home.

Snowball

Snowball CocktailSnowball Cocktail
Snowball Cocktail

This Christmas classic takes a few minutes to make and has just three ingredients:

  • Lime juice or cordial
  • Advocaat
  • Sparkling lemonade

How to make it:

  • Fill your glass with ice, and add 15ml of lime juice.
  • Pour the advocaat and lemonade over and stir gently.
  • Optional: add marachino cherry for garnish.

Cranberry Gin Fizz

This delicious delight is an all year rounded, but there’s something special about a gin fizz at Christmas. Here’s what you need:

  • Caster Sugar
  • Frozen or fresh cranberries
  • Gin of your choice
  • Soda Water
  • Orange
  • Ice cubes

How to make it:

  • Pop the sugar and water into a saucepan on a low heat, until the sugar is dissolved.
  • Add the cranberries and turn up heat to medium-low. Cook these for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally
  • Leave the mixture to cool and blitz to a smooth puree, this step is optional
  • Pop 1 tbsp of the cranberry mix into each glass, and stir in a measure of gin.
  • Top the drink with soda water and garnish with ice cubes and an orange slice.

Easy Mulled Wine

You're spolit for choice if you're looking for a glass or mug of tasty mulled wine in Edinburgh this festive season.You're spolit for choice if you're looking for a glass or mug of tasty mulled wine in Edinburgh this festive season.
You're spolit for choice if you're looking for a glass or mug of tasty mulled wine in Edinburgh this festive season.

Mulled wine can often feel like a mammoth task but this recipe calls to just chuck everything in a pot and heat gently until it is simmering:

  • Bottle of red wine
  • 50ml brandy
  • Cinnamon stick
  • 4 cloves
  • 1 sliced clementine
  • 3 dried figs

How to make it:

  • Pour red wine, and dry ingredients into a saucepan.
  • Heat very gently until simmering then bring the saucepan of the heat
  • Remove the whole spices and peppercorns, and stir in the brandy!

Bucks Fizz

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The ultimate Christmas morning drink, because it has orange juice so that makes it OK to drink before 11am. All you need is:

  • Orange juice
  • Prosecco (or the fizz of your choice!)

How to make it:

  • Pour your orange juice and fizz into a glass of your choice.
  • Enjoy!

Champagne Cocktail

Champagne cocktailChampagne cocktail
Champagne cocktail

This sparkling showstopper is super easy and will impress your guests:

  • 1 sugar cube
  • Angostura bitters
  • Cognac
  • Cold fizzy

How to make it:

  • Place sugar cube onto a spoon and add the bitters.
  • Drop the soaked sugar cube into your glass and add the cognac
  • Top the glass up with fizz and enjoy!

Hot Toddy

The hot toddy usually combines either brandy, whisky or dark rum with hot water and sugar or honey. This drink is a favourite throughout the winter period and proves popular at Christmas, ranking ninth in the list (Photo: Shutterstock)The hot toddy usually combines either brandy, whisky or dark rum with hot water and sugar or honey. This drink is a favourite throughout the winter period and proves popular at Christmas, ranking ninth in the list (Photo: Shutterstock)
The hot toddy usually combines either brandy, whisky or dark rum with hot water and sugar or honey. This drink is a favourite throughout the winter period and proves popular at Christmas, ranking ninth in the list (Photo: Shutterstock)

The most warming and maybe the most famous festive drink is also one of the easiest to make:

  • Whisky
  • Honey
  • Cinnamon stick
  • Lemon
  • Cloves

How to make it:

  • Whisk the Whisky and honey together and split between 2 heatproof glasses.
  • Add half cinnamon stick and top up with boiling water.
  • Add a splash of lemon (your preference).
  • Garnish with a slice of lemon, clove and enjoy!

Festive Negroni

This twist on an Italian favourite will impress all your guests:

  • Vermouth
  • Campari
  • Gin
  • Cinnamon sticks
  • Cloves
  • Star anise
  • Cardamom pods
  • Peppercorns

How to make it:

  • Toast the cinnamon, cloves star anise, cardamom and peppercorns in dry frying pan for 5 minutes.
  • After leaving them to cool tip the toasted spices into a medium jar over gin - seal, chill and allow them to infuse for 48 hours.
  • Strain the infused gin. Fill glasses with ice.
  • Pour 25ml of infused gin over the ice, with vermouth, and campari.
  • Garnish with orange slices and bay.

Cranberry Spritz

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

This non-alcoholic festive fizz is just the follow delicious ingredients:

  • Cranberry juice
  • Orange
  • Sparkling white grape juice
  • Ice cubes

How to make it:

  • Pour 50ml cranberry juice into champagne coups or a glass of your choice.
  • Add a splash of orange juice to each glass and stir.
  • Add an ice cube or two to each glass and top them up with sparkling grape juice!

Have we included your favourite? Send in your pictures on NationalWorldUK/">Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

A message from the editor:

Thank you for reading. NationalWorld is a new national news brand, produced by a team of journalists, editors, video producers and designers who live and work across the UK. Find out more about who’s who in the team, and our editorial values. We want to start a community among our readers, so please follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, and keep the conversation going. You can also sign up to our email newsletters and get a curated selection of our best reads to your inbox every day.

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.