Step inside and have a festive cocktail, if you’d like. In fact, you’re more than welcome to try any or all of these 15 Christmas Cocktail recipes this holiday season!

Choose just one, or try them all! Any of these Christmas cocktail recipes are sure to warm up your holidays this year.

From warm and cozy drinks that will warm you through and through, to thick and creamy dessert style winter cocktails, there’s a little something for everyone in this recipe guide!

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These must-try Christmas cocktails will get you through the holiday season effortlessly! They’re the perfect sip for gift wrapping, or while you’re baking Christmas Cookies. They’re also a great pairing to serve with your favorite traditional Christmas appetizers.

Bonus! They’ll help you sail right through a get-together with even the most challenging relatives. (You know the ones I’m talking about, don’t you?)

Be sure to pin and save this festive roundup to inspired your holiday entertaining this season.

Christmas Cocktails

Today, we’re rounding up 15 of my best holiday cocktails that we’ve shared over the years. From creamy, decadent dessert style drinks, to a few revitalized classics, there’s a cocktail for every holiday occasion here.

I’ve been a bit of a cocktail aficionado for years… and while I love a simple glass of wine, there’s just something about sipping a perfectly executed mixed drink that I will always love.

Poinsettia drinks on a white tray, cranberries and rosemary for garnish
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Tips

  • Don’t forget a fabulous seasonal garnish – think cinnamon sticks, marshmallows, cranberries, oranges and more!
  • Some of these cocktails (like sangria and mulled wine) can be made ahead, which can help with party timelines and hostessing duties.
  • Serve both a traditional cocktail and a non-alcoholic version to accommodate all guests and allow everyone to have something special.
  • Using one of these recipes for your family Christmas parties? Don’t skip my complete guide to Christmas Recipes!

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most popular drink at Christmas?

Well that depends on who you ask, of course! Most Americans would likely list Eggnog as the most iconic Christmas drink. However, hot chocolate is the most popular warm drink during the winter here – spiked with liquor or not!

What is a good alcoholic drink for cold weather?

Cider! Try homemade apple cider or pear cider for a drink that will warm you through and through. You can spike them with a wide variety of alcohol options so you have something for every palette.

Three frozen margarita Christmas cocktails topped with fresh cranberries

15 Christmas Cocktail Recipes

Put your Christmas music on, warm up the oven for cookies, and make yourself a cocktail, friends!

Quick Tip: If you want to double or triple any of these recipes, simply use the yield tab on the printable recipe card in each post. It will calculate the ingredients for you – no math required!

Spiked Hot Chocolate with Peppermint Schnapps

This rich and creamy Peppermint Hot Chocolate recipe is delightful all winter long – and who doesn’t love a steaming cup of spiked hot chocolate? The frosty cool flavor of peppermint schnapps drinks are a favorite addition to my winter cocktail line-up.

A white mug full of boozy hot chocolate, topped with toasted marshmallows.

An Oatmeal Cookie cocktail is a delicious drink that tastes just like its namesake.

The Oatmeal cookie shot, a favorite of mine because of the delicious and distinct flavor, can be made to serve one or many with my easily adaptable recipe.

A clear glass with an oatmeal cookie cocktail, fresh winter greens on the edge of the image.

Merry Mint with Peppermint Schnapps

A Merry Mint cocktail made with Peppermint Schnapps will warm your soul this holiday season! This fun and festive Christmas Cocktail is the perfect blend of cream, mint and vodka!

cocktail with peppermint schnapps garnished with candy cane

Poinsettia Cocktail

If you’re looking for the prettiest, most festive cocktail around, look no further than this fabulous poinsettia cocktail! With its bold, deep red color and all the classic flavors of the holidays, it’s an unforgettable Christmas drink you’re going to love.

A white tray with 3 glasses full of poinsettia cocktail, champagne being poured in

Mistletoe Margarita

Hosting a holiday get-together or looking for something festive to sip while helping Santa get ready for Christmas? This simple mistletoe margarita is sure to leave you feeling merry and bright!

A cranberry margarita that is bursting with bright juicy flavor, this cocktail feels like a delicious little holiday indulgence.

A pair of cranberry margaritas topped with fresh cranberries and mint

Sangria Christmas Cocktail

This Spanish Sangria is the ultimate cocktail indulgence and perfect for the holidays. Sangria punch serves beautifully for parties, and it’s easy to create a non alcoholic sangria too!

Traditional red sangria in stemware, garnished with fresh mint and orange slices.

Mai Tai (with a Christmas twist!)

How to make a Mai Tai – a traditional cocktail recipe with a twist for the holidays. This fruity dark rum cocktail is a twist on the original and made with pineapple juice. Quick and easy, this festive cocktail is made with just four ingredients.

mai tai with cranberry skewer in a clear glass stemmed vase.

Cinnamon Toast Cocktail

A Cinnamon Toast is the ultimate fall cocktail that will warm you up on even the chilliest of evenings. It’s the perfect blend of Cinnamon Schnapps (a Cinnamon Liquor) and apple cider, garnished with an apple slice and cinnamon sticks!

A christmas cocktail garnished with an apple slice and cinnamon stick

Apple Pear Prosecco Cocktail

This is one of my favorite holiday cocktails! It’s deliciously fruity and feels festive topped with cranberries and a cinnamon stick to stir!

Two glasses of cranberry punch with cinnamon sticks and apple slices.

Pear Cider

Pear cider is the fragrant, sweet fall companion to the ever-classic apple cider. This (non-alcoholic) homemade pear cider recipe is aromatic, cozy and brimming with delicious fall flavor!

Spike it with bourbon, rum, or even vodka for a delicious Christmas cocktail the whole crew will love!

A pear cider recipe in a cast iron pot

Snowball Amaretto Christmas Cocktail

When the temperatures drop, I love to treat everyone to a Snowball cocktail after a delicious dinner. The slight bitterness of the almond amaretto flavor combined with sweet ice cream is the perfect pairing in this snowball recipe.

Learn how to make this amaretto liqueur dessert cocktail with just a few simple ingredients.

An ice cream and amaretto snowball cocktail in a stemmed glass, on a marble countertop.

Mulled Wine

Cozy, fragrant and delicious… this Mulled Wine Recipe is the perfect winter drink to keep the chill at bay. No German ski slopes required for this classic gluhwein recipe, just invite your friends!

Gray enameled cast iron pot on stove top with mulled wine inside.

Peppermint White Russian

This Peppermint White Russian recipe is wonderful peppermint drink to enjoy around the holidays. The coffee liqueur, vodka, and half and half compliment the zingy peppermint schnapps to make a festive and delicious peppermint cocktail.

A peppermint white russian cocktail, garnished with a candy cane and crushed peppermint on the rim.

Non Alcoholic Mulled Wine

An easy Non Alcoholic Mulled Wine recipe for the holidays is enjoyable for people of all ages. This alcohol free mulled wine recipe is created with sweet grape juice, fruit and spices that simmer into a hot Christmas drink that warms you from the inside out.

non alcoholic mulled grape juice on the stovetop with orange slices and spices

Winter Bourbon Smash

The Winter Smash cocktail is a spin on the classic whiskey smash recipe you make in the summertime. Using bourbon and a bit of club soda, this bourbon smash libation is full of fresh fruit and the zing of cinnamon we enjoy when it’s cold outside.

Three Smash cocktails garnished with rosemary, blueberries, oranges, and cinnamon sticks all on a white plate.

No matter how you’re entertaining this holiday season, I hope you find some inspiration and joy for your celebrations this year! Cheers to a warm and cozy Christmas!

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