With Halloween just a few weeks away I’ve been looking at what kinds of cocktails I’d like to drink while I’m waiting for trick or treaters!

Pumpkin Sangria

Sangria is great for any party. This one takes us into fall with that pumpkin spice that everyone loves. Since it’s made with white wine, it helps carry those seasonal flavors while still being more refreshing than a traditional red Sangria.

Ingredient

• 1 bottle of white wine
• 1 cup pumpkin puree (canned or homemade)
• 1 cup apple cider
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or honey (adjust to taste)
• 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (or a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger)
• 1 apple, thinly sliced
• 1 orange, thinly sliced
• 1 cup sparkling water or club soda (for the carbonation, added just before serving)
• Cinnamon sticks (for garnish, optional)

Instructions

1. In a large pitcher, combine the wine, pumpkin puree, apple cider, brandy, maple syrup, and pumpkin pie spice. Stir well to blend.
2. Add the sliced apple and orange to the mixture.
3. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours (or up to overnight) to let the flavors meld.
4. Just before serving, add the sparkling water or club soda for some fizz.
5. Serve over ice and garnish with cinnamon sticks if desired.

Enjoy your festive pumpkin sangria!

Witch’s Brew

Witch’s Brew has a strong lemonade taste to it with a hint of the blue curaçao. I like this drink mostly for the color and the fun purple rim. It’s fairly sweet and a good one that can be pre-made for parties with the lemon-lime soda added at the end. I used club soda instead of Sprite as I wanted to tone down the sweetness a bit.

Ingredients

• 2 oz vodka
• 1 oz blue curaçao
• 1 oz lemon juice
• Lemon-lime soda (to top)
• Black sugar or edible glitter (for rim)

Instructions

1. Rim a glass with black sugar or edible glitter.
2. In a shaker, combine vodka, blue curaçao, and lemon juice with ice.
3. Shake well and strain into the glass.
4. Top with lemon-lime soda** and garnish with a slice of lemon.
   ** I used club soda to make it a little less sweet.

Bloody Mary

A Bloody Mary is perfect drink for Halloween simply for the name. It’s also great as I like to think that it’s full of nutrients so it’s a healthy drink! If you’re drinking this one for parties you can mix a lot of the ingredients before hand and I like to make a buffet of garnishes for people to choose from. I also have friends who like their drinks in varying degrees of spiciness. Leave out the hot sauce or horseradish and let people make theirs extra spicy!

Ingredients

• 2 oz vodka
• 4 oz tomato juice
• 1 oz lemon juice
• 2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
• 2 dashes hot sauce
• Celery salt and pepper (to taste)
• Garnishes: celery stalk, olives, and a slice of bacon (optional)

Instructions

1. In a shaker, combine vodka, tomato juice, lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, celery salt, and pepper.
2. Shake gently and pour into a glass filled with ice.
3. Garnish with celery, olives, and bacon.

Pumpkin Old Fashioned

While this may not necessarily specifically be a Halloween cocktail for a big party, it is perfect for a night at home waiting for the trick-or-treaters to arrive! An excellent sipping drink, definitely play around with the amount of pumpkin puree to add. It will end up being a thicker drink than your classic Old Fashioned, but I think it’s still delicious.

Ingredients

• 2 oz of bourbon or whiskey
• 1 teaspoon of pumpkin puree
• A few dashes of angostura bitters
• one barspoon of simple syrup

Instructions

1. Combine ingredients in a rocks glass
2. Stir
3. Add ice
4. Garnish with cinnamon stick and orange peel

Graveyard Punch

When testing this Halloween cocktail I made it as a single serving. Each ingredient was added by the ounce. It was a delicious as a single serving and when I tried it on a larger scale it was a hit among my friends. This is light, fruity and easy to drink!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 parts vodka
• 1 part peach schnapps
• 1 part orange juice
• 1 part cranberry juice
• 1/4 part lime juice
• Gummy worms (for garnish)

Instructions

1. In a punch bowl, mix vodka, peach schnapps, orange juice, and cranberry juice.
2. Stir well and serve over ice.
3. Garnish with gummy worms for a spooky touch.

Whichever of these Halloween cocktails you choose to make for the guests at your party, you’re sure to have a fan or two. What are you favorite Halloween cocktails to make? Leave a comment below and share your recipes!