6 Spooky Cocktails to Serve at Your Halloween Party
Halloween has always been my favorite holiday. Of course, Halloween is the perfect excuse to eat your weight’s worth in candy! But it is also one of the most social holidays, built around trick-or-treating with friends as kids and, as adults, Halloween parties. If you employ a few cocktail tricks (and treats!), your drinks will be the centerpiece of your Halloween party.
Not ready to throw a full on monster mash? Try a haunted happy hour, a chance for friends to stop by and have one of your spooky cocktails without worrying about hosting an entire evening.
The key to a successful Halloween cocktail? The devil is in the details! Try your hand at using secret ingredients like dry ice and activated charcoal, or just look to spooky glassware and garnishes to glow up your classic cocktails. If you’re looking for an easy option, make a big batch of one cocktail in a punch bowl, accent with a few plastic spiders frozen into ice cubes, and call it witches brew!
Halloween Cocktail Recipes That Are Scarily Delicious!
Whether you are looking for something boo-zy or non-alcoholic, here are six scary-delicious Halloween cocktails:
1. Bloody Syringe Shots
2 oz. Seagram’s 80 Proof Vodka
4 dashes Worcestershire Sauce
1⁄2 oz. Tomato Juice
1-2 dashes Tabasco
1⁄2 oz. Lemon Juice
1⁄2 tsp. Horseradish
Garlic Powder to Taste
Directions: Combine all ingredients in the glass over the ice and stir with a cocktail spoon. Fill into a toy, needleless syringe and chill. This syringe shot is the perfect accompaniment to a nurse or doctor costume, or even a vampire theme!
2. Beet-le Juice
2 oz. Crystal Head Onyx Vodka (or vodka of your choice)
¾ oz. fresh lemon
¾ oz. beetroot simple syrup
1 egg white
Muddled jalapeno
Pinch of salt
Directions: Add all liquid ingredients into a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously without ice for 15-20 seconds, add ice and shake again for another few seconds. Double strain the mixture into a rocks glass filled with ice, garnish with a jalapeno slice and lemon zest.
3. Spooky Skimmer
2 oz. American Rye Whiskey (or whiskey of your choice)
¾ oz. fresh lemon juice
¾ oz. simple syrup
Red wine to float
Directions: Combine American Rye Whiskey, lemon, and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker. Add ice, shake until cold, and strain over fresh ice. Float red wine over the top of the mixture and garnish with a cherry.
Pro tip: For an easy way to “float” something on top of a cocktail, pour the mixture (red wine, in this case) on top of the cocktail using the back of a spoon to break the fall and softly diffuse the floater on top of the drink, without it mixing in.
The key to a successful Halloween cocktail?
The devil is in the details!
4. Pumpkin Margarita
2 oz. Tequila
1 oz. Fresh Lemon Juice
¾ oz Light Agave Nectar
1 oz. Pumpkin Puree
Directions: Combine ingredients in a shaker with ice. Shake well and strain into a hollowed mini-pumpkin. Garnish with freshly ground nutmeg and cinnamon. Serve with a straw.
5. Hold the BOO-ze (Serves 7)
1 liter non-alcoholic apple cider
7 fl. oz. Three Spirit Social Elixir (or non-alcoholic herbal beverage of your choice like tea)
3 lemon wheels
3 orange wheels
1 stick cinnamon
5 cloves
1 star anise
1 black cardamom, cut open
5 allspice berries, crushed
Directions: Add all ingredients to a saucepan or soup kettle and heat gently until steaming.
6. Smoke and Mirrors
1.5 oz. vodka
1 oz. dry vermouth
½ oz. Mezcal
Directions: Add all ingredients to mixing glass; stir. Strain into a coupe glass and carefully drop a small piece of dry ice into the cocktail glass after the cocktail is poured in to give it the smoky effect. Dry ice can be harmful if consumed, see dry ice safety tips at the beginning of the article!
If you do decide to try using dry ice, there are some important things to keep in mind. Dry ice is extremely cold and can damage your skin and cause serious injury. You shouldn’t ingest dry ice or let it touch your skin until it is completely melted or dissolved into your drink. There are some purpose-built cocktail stirrers for dry ice that allows you to safely drink your cocktail while it is still smoking; otherwise, you need to wait until the dry ice is done smoking before beginning to drink. Make sure to use thick gloves when handling dry ice, never bare hands. And, of course, read the safety instructions provided by your dry ice distributor carefully.
Using activated charcoal is much easier. Charcoal can turn cocktails deep black, which is perfect for Halloween. Unlike regular charcoal, activated charcoal is created to be very absorbent and safe to consume in limited quantities. And, activated charcoal is almost entirely tasteless, so will not change the flavor profile of your drink. To play it safe, if you are taking any prescription drugs, avoid activated charcoal.
Happy Halloween!
