5 Festive Christmas Cocktails to Celebrate the Season

From Gingerbread & Spiced Rum to Limoncello, Yuzu & Cherry Brandy

Christmas in Australia can call for two completely different kinds of drink.

There are the flavours that simply taste like Christmas — gingerbread, cinnamon, spice, cherry and toffee.

And then there's the reality of celebrating Christmas in summer, when something cold, citrusy and sparkling beside the pool sounds considerably more appealing.

So we've brought both together.

Here are five festive cocktails using Tamborine Mountain Distillery spirits and liqueurs, from a Spiced Christmas Old Fashioned to a refreshing Limoncello & Yuzu Fizz.

1. Spiced Christmas Old Fashioned

Featuring: Spiced Christmas Liqueur + Spiced Gold Rum

For the person who likes Christmas flavours but still wants a serious cocktail.

Our Spiced Christmas Liqueur and Spiced Gold Rum bring warmth and spice to an Old Fashioned-style serve, finished with orange and cinnamon.

Ingredients

• 45ml TMD Spiced Christmas Liqueur
• 15ml TMD Spiced Gold Rum
• 1 sugar cube
• Dash of orange bitters
• Ice
• Orange twist and cinnamon stick, to garnish

Method

Muddle the sugar cube with the orange bitters in a glass. Add the Spiced Christmas Liqueur and Spiced Gold Rum, then stir with ice until chilled and appropriately diluted.

Garnish with an orange twist and cinnamon stick.

Christmas mood: After dinner, presents opened, nowhere else to be.

2. Gingerbread Martini

Featuring: Gingerbread Liqueur + Gold Rum

This is Christmas dessert in cocktail form.

Gingerbread Liqueur and Gold Rum provide the warm spice, while cloudy apple and lime bring fruit and acidity so the drink doesn't become overly sweet.

Ingredients

• 35ml TMD Gingerbread Liqueur
• 20ml TMD Gold Rum
• 30ml cloudy apple juice
• 10ml fresh lime juice
• 5ml simple syrup
• Aquafaba or egg white, for foam
• Gingerbread biscuit, to garnish

Method

Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker and shake well. Add ice, shake again until chilled, then fine strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Garnish with a gingerbread biscuit.

Christmas mood: When dessert and cocktails should really be the same course.

3. Limoncello & Yuzu Christmas Fizz

Featuring: Limoncello + Yuzucello

 

Limoncello brings lemon, Yuzucello adds another layer of aromatic citrus, and sparkling wine turns the combination into an easy summer spritz.

Best of all, there's no shaker required.

Ingredients

• 30ml TMD Limoncello
• 15ml TMD Yuzucello
• 90ml sparkling wine
• Splash of soda water
• Ice
• Fresh lemon and mint, to garnish

Method

Fill a wine glass with ice. Add the Limoncello and Yuzucello, top with sparkling wine and finish with a splash of soda.

Garnish with fresh lemon and mint.

Christmas mood: Lunch outside, seafood on the table, Queensland summer in full swing.

4. Wattle Toffee Eggnog

Featuring: Wattle Toffee Liqueur

Traditional eggnog meets one of our distinctly Australian liqueur flavours.

Wattle Toffee Liqueur brings its toffee and nutty character to the creamy base, with freshly grated nutmeg providing that unmistakable Christmas aroma.

Ingredients

• 30ml TMD Wattle Toffee Liqueur
• 60ml cream or milk
• 1 egg yolk
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• Ice

Method

Shake the Wattle Toffee Liqueur, cream or milk and egg yolk thoroughly with ice. Strain into a chilled glass and finish with freshly grated nutmeg.

Food safety: This recipe contains raw egg. Use fresh, properly refrigerated eggs and take appropriate food-safety precautions. People who are pregnant, elderly, very young or immunocompromised should avoid raw or undercooked egg products.

Christmas mood: Christmas pudding has competition.

5. Cherry Brandy Sour

Featuring: Cherry Brandy Liqueur

Cherry already feels at home at Christmas.

Here, Cherry Brandy Liqueur meets fresh lemon in a simple sour, giving you sweetness, fruit and acidity without needing a long ingredient list.

Ingredients

• 50ml TMD Cherry Brandy Liqueur
• 25ml fresh lemon juice
• 15ml simple syrup
• Ice
• Cherry or lemon twist, to garnish

Method

Shake the Cherry Brandy Liqueur, lemon juice and simple syrup with ice until well chilled.

Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice and garnish with a cherry or lemon twist.

Christmas mood: Christmas lunch is finished. The afternoon isn't.

Which Christmas Cocktail Should You Make?

If you're serving a crowd, you don't necessarily need to make all five.

For something light and summery, start with the Limoncello & Yuzu Christmas Fizz.

For warm Christmas spice, choose the Gingerbread Martini or Spiced Christmas Old Fashioned.

If you're after something creamy and dessert-like, try the Wattle Toffee Eggnog.

And for a simple balance of fruit and fresh citrus, make the Cherry Brandy Sour.

Or pick two contrasting drinks — one sparkling for the beginning of the celebration and something richer for later.

A Little Tamborine Mountain Christmas

One of the things we love about Christmas cocktails is that they don't have to choose between tradition and an Australian summer.

Gingerbread, spice, cherry and toffee can sit quite happily alongside lemon, yuzu, sparkling wine and plenty of ice.

So fill the ice bucket, choose your bottles and give the Christmas drinks a little Tamborine Mountain character this year.

► EXPLORE OUR CHRISTMAS COLLECTION

► DISCOVER MORE COCKTAIL RECIPES

Frequently Asked Questions

What are good cocktails for Christmas in Australia?

For a warm Australian Christmas, refreshing cocktails made with citrus, sparkling wine and plenty of ice work particularly well. Limoncello and yuzu make an easy summer spritz, while cherry, gingerbread, rum and spice can bring traditional Christmas flavours into cocktails served cold.

What is an easy Christmas cocktail for a crowd?

A Limoncello and Yuzu Fizz is one of the easiest options because it can be built directly in the glass with Limoncello, Yuzucello, sparkling wine, soda and ice. There is no shaking or complicated preparation required.

What Christmas cocktails can I serve after dinner?

For an after-dinner drink, try a Spiced Christmas Old Fashioned, Gingerbread Martini or Wattle Toffee Eggnog. These richer styles work particularly well when you want a cocktail to take the place of — or accompany — dessert.

Can I make Christmas cocktails without egg?

Absolutely. Four of the five recipes above can be prepared without egg. The Gingerbread Martini can use aquafaba instead of egg white, while the Limoncello & Yuzu Fizz, Spiced Christmas Old Fashioned and Cherry Brandy Sour don't require egg at all.