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We’re kicking off the holiday season with this festive Mistletoe Kiss Cocktail. Homemade ginger honey syrup, mixed with vodka, pomegranate juice, orange liqueur, and lime, then topped off with bubbly water. Made extra sweet and special with Campari, then finished with sugar-dusted rosemary for a festive and delicious holiday cocktail. So fun and yummy for upcoming Christmas parties with family and friends.
Happy Christmas cocktail Saturday! These are my favorite posts to share. Very excited for today’s cocktail (or mocktail), it might end up being my favorite of the season!
Hoping everyone is enjoying their long holiday weekend. It’s the perfect weekend to mix up Christmas cocktails, light a fire, and watch holiday movies on repeat all night. The festive, coziest season is here. I hope you all plan to enjoy it!
At this point, I’ve made more cocktails than I ever thought I could. There was once a time when I thought I had made them all, but then I started to explore different liqueurs, experience new drinks while traveling, and pick my family’s brains for ideas.
Now, I have so many new ones to make. Our Christmas cocktail list is very FULL this season.
Here are the details
Step 1: the ginger syrup
The ginger syrup is key here. Honey, fresh ginger, cinnamon, and rosemary all simmered together. Nothing complicated, just the warming holiday flavors we all love.
It will give the cocktail just the right amount of sweetness and spice.
Step 2: mix the cocktail
The drink is simply vodka and Campari stirred together with pomegranate juice, orange liqueur, and lime juice. Originally the drink called for Chambord, but Campari has warmth with cinnamon and cloves, it sounded great for this mix. The Campari gives the cocktail a special touch with its sweetness, and hints of orange, cinnamon, and cloves. Such a unique, but delicious combination!
It’s something you don’t often get but is truly the perfect pairing. Top the drink off with sparkling water for a little fizziness.
Step 3: make it fancy
Sugared rosemary, pomegranate, and a cinnamon stick – my favorite cocktail garnishes to add to drinks this time of year, delicious and so pretty. I love the way these garnishes make the drink sparkle like snow!
The rosemary is so simple to make. Grab fresh rosemary sprigs, dampen them with water (or dip them into the ginger syrup), then cover in granulated sugar. Let the rosemary dry for an hour at room temperature. It’s this glistening rosemary that’s the perfect final touch.
This Mistletoe Kiss is holiday cocktail perfection, it’s always a hit! Happy holiday season everyone!!
Looking for other easy drink recipes?? Here are my favorites:
Sparkling Christmas Party Punch
Holiday Cheermeister Bourbon Punch
Spiced Honey Bourbon Old Fashioned Pitcher
Lastly, if you make this Mistletoe Kiss Cocktail, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Mistletoe Kiss Cocktail
Servings: 1
Calories Per Serving: 351 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Ginger Syrup
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2 inches fresh ginger sliced
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 sprig rosemary
Cocktail
- 2 ounces (1/4 cup) vodka
- 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) pomegranate juice
- 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) Campari
- 1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) orange liqueur (Cointreau)
- 1/2 ounce (1 tablespoon) lime juice
- 1 -2 tablespoons ginger syrup
- sparkling water, for topping
Instructions
- 1. To make the ginger syrup. In a pot, bring 1/2 cup water, honey, ginger, cinnamon, and rosemary to a boil over high heat. Boil for 2-3 minutes, then remove from the heat. Let cool, then strain the syrup into a glass jar. This syrup makes enough for about 6 drinks.2. In a glass filled with ice, combine 1-2 tablespoons of ginger syrup, vodka, pomegranate juice, Campari, orange liqueur, and lime juice. Stir to mix. Top off with sparkling water. Garnish with pomegranate arils, sugared rosemary, and cinnamon sticks, if desired.3. To Make a Mocktail: Add a tiny pinch of cloves to the ginger syrup. Then, omit the vodka, Campari, and orange liquor. Use 2 additional tablespoons of pomegranate juice, 1 tablespoon of lemon or lime juice, and 2 tablespoons of orange juice. SUGARED ROSEMARY1. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Gently run rosemary sprigs under a little water to dampen, then place on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle the rosemary with granulated sugar on all sides, making sure the rosemary is thoroughly coated in sugar. Allow to dry on the baking sheet for 1 hour. The rosemary can be made 1 day in advance and stored at room temperature.
Mistletoe Kiss Punch
Servings: 8
Calories Per Serving: 351 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup honey
- 2 inches fresh ginger, sliced
- 2 cinnamon sticks
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 2 cups vodka
- 1 cup pomegranate juice
- 1 cup Campari
- 1/2 cup orange liqueur (Cointreau)
- 1/2 cup lime juice
- ginger syrup
- 3/4 bottle sparkling, water for topping
Instructions
- 1. To make the ginger syrup. In a pot, bring 1/2 cup water, honey, ginger, cinnamon, and rosemary to a boil over high heat. Boil for 2-3 minutes, then remove from the heat. Let cool, then strain the syrup into a glass jar. This syrup makes enough for about 6 drinks.2. In a punch bowl, combine the ginger syrup, vodka, pomegranate juice, Campari, orange liquor, and lime juice. Stir to combine, chill until ready to serve. Before serving, add ice, then pour the sparkling water overtop. Serve with sugared rosemary (recipe above).
The non-alcoholic “punch” recipe still lists all the alcohol as ingredients. Can you post the mocktail recipe?
How much Chambord would you suggest in place of the campari? Thanks!
Hi Michelle,
I would use the same amount, so 2 tablespoons. Please let me know if you have any other questions! Cheers! xT
Made this last night – so yummy and complex!
Hi Emily,
I appreciate you trying this recipe and your review, so glad it was delish! xT
This is such a wonderful cocktail: sweet, sour, herbal, bitter, spicy, and very reminiscent of the holidays. I almost never use vodka since it’s such a blank slate, but it works perfectly here to allow all the other flavors to shine. The photography, which helped pull me into making the recipe, is amazing as well.
Hi Ben,
I appreciate you making this recipe and your feedback! So glad it was enjoyed:) Have a great week! xT
Where did you get the red and white striped girant candy decoration? I just love the look of those!
Hi Kaylie,
So sorry, I cannot find the link anywhere for that! But here is something similar:
https://a.co/d/hc7BW81
I hope this helps! xT
I have some Chambord I’m trying to finish. How much should I add in exchange for the Cointreau? Thanks!
Hi Lana,
Unfortunately, I wouldn’t use those interchangeably, they provide different flavors in this drink. Please let me know if I can help in any other way! Cheers! xx
Whoops, meant Chambord to replace the Campari. You mentioned the original recipe had this.
Yes, that would work:)
This looks amazing! Any suggestions for a replacement for pomegranite juice? Does it Really add a lot of flavour or is it more for the colour? Could I maybe use grenadine instead and use less of the syrup so it’s not so sweet? Any help would be great thank you.
Hi Janet,
I really love the pom juice here, but cranberry would also be another great option! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Hey Teighan, how long does the ginger syrup last in the fridge?
How much rosemary is used to make the ginger syrup? This cocktail sounds delicious and looks beautiful!
Thanks so much, Debbie! You can use 1 sprig of rosemary. I hope you love this recipe! xx
Bravo !! Well put! Happy Holidays!
LOVE your cocktails and your style and enthusiasm for cooking and your zest for life. Love that you share SO much with your followers. I have made many of your dishes to rave reviews as well as your cocktails. And I cook for some pretty demanding eaters! Nothing pretentious, just good homemade deliciousness! Thank you. Don’t let the critics bother you!!! We are all human and make mistakes. Just keep being you. Enjoying family, life and your passions. Happy Holidays!
Hey Aneta,
Thank you so much for your kind message and making so many recipes! We truly appreciate you being here:) Happy Holidays! xT
I love your recipes! And have purchased one cookbook so far
Thank you so much, Carolyn!!
As someone who owns a retail liquor store, it would be helpful to give people an example of “orange liqueur” (not liquor). Maybe Cointreau or triple sec? Also please change the spelling of Chambord.
Hi Jennifer,
Thanks so much for pointing out this typo:) We also have it linked! Have a great weekend! xx
Thank you for including a mocktail version. You’re drinks always look so amazing but my family and I don’t drink alcohol. I’m definitely trying this one!
Thanks so much Kristin!! Of course, happy to include the mocktail recipe as well:) xx
Where can you get those glasses? Love them!
Hi Mary,
So sorry, I no longer have a link for these glasses, they are pretty old from Anthropologie! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
I think it’s time to focus on quality over quantity. So many of your posts have typos, are missing ingredients in the ingredients list, don’t turn out for so many people that it can’t be a coincidence or user error, or have the wrong pictures like in today’s post. If someone didn’t know those were pictures from yesterday’s drink, it would be confusing and make them wonder why their syrup doesn’t look like yours. And they shouldn’t have to figure it out or be knowledgeable enough. People are looking to you as the expert. Maybe post fewer blog posts that are tested more and less rushed. And repost some of your amazing older recipes to instagram on the off days. I really think this would increase the quality of your blog and your life.
I would have to agree with Caroline. I love the recipes in HBH, but I do find that the recipes/ingredient lists are not always accurate and I need to ‘read between the lines’ on some of them to fully understand.
Please continue to test and produce new recipes. They’re amazing…just some quality control before being published would be appreciated!
Wow-don’t know what you’re reading -but I’ve had absolutely NO problem reading or understanding the recipes here. The pictures are terrific -nothing is confusing-nothing feels rushed & the quality of the blog is outstanding & pretty presumptuous to assume that somehow there’s something lacking in Tieghans quality of life? I love her blog & recipes hope not one thing changes.
Maybe-in this season of charity & goodwill-you should give some.
Thank you! I agree so much with your comment.
Completely agree.