6 Batched Halloween Cocktails, from a Former NYC Bartender

Halloween was always love-hate.

I loved it because it was an excuse to get dressed up and do outlandish makeup. I also loved it because as a bartender in New York, Halloween was a huge night to line my pockets. It was fun to see all of the creative costumes (New Yorkers really go all out for every holiday, Halloween included), and serve the masses at a bar that was along the Halloween parade route.

I hated it, however, because I was often in the weeds while working, slammed, making upward of 17 cocktails at once. Halloween is a huge drinking night, and after years of going through it, I realized the solution to the problem was batched cocktails. So, every October 30th, I’d take the time to mix giant jugs of popular drinks with a fall twist, like apple-cinnamon margaritas and pumpkin-spiced espresso martinis. And despite batched cocktails implying that less care goes into them, when done right, such is not the case.

As you prepare for your Halloween bash, take the advice of a bitter, retired New York City bartender, and save yourself the headache by batching some of these cocktails.

If you’re looking for a drink that’s aesthetically Halloween, incorporating both orange and black, let me introduce you to Mr. Pumpkin Mana. I’m not too keen on drinks being overly sweet, so adding in some veggie juice, ginger, and even a little hot sauce and celery salt, helps keep this drink on the more savory side. It almost reminds me of a fall-influenced Bloody Mary.

Ingredients:

• 4 cups Teremana Reposado
• 3 cups Fresh Carrot Juice 
• 2 cups Fresh Lemon Juice 
• 2 cups Pumpkin Ginger Syrup 
• 1 tbsp of Hot Sauce (or to taste)
• ½ tsp of Celery Salt (or to taste) 

Build in a punch bowl with fresh ice and stir. To make pumpkin ginger syrup, use a 15 oz can of pumpkin puree & 15 oz of ginger syrup (which can be made by using equal parts simple syrup and ginger juice, cooked over low heat until well incorporated) blended together. Line up some rocks glasses rimmed with black salt, and serve as guests walk into the room for a welcome cocktail.

I’m a sucker for mulled wine, and maybe part of that is the memories associated with it. My first time trying it was in the form of vin chaud in France. My sister and I were on a bike tour of Paris on a cold November day, and when we stopped for lunch, the only thing that made sense to warm us up was a hot glass of alcohol. Since then, it has essentially become a ritual for me to make mulled wine as soon as the weather starts to turn. So, it only makes sense to include a mulled wine recipe for your Halloween gathering. Plus, making this variation, which is inspired by Nikki McCutcheon, the Senior Beverage Manager of New York’s Cathedrale and Sake No Hana, is as easy as they come when on the subject of batched cocktails.

Ingredients:

• 4L Casillero del Diablo Merlot
• 16oz Orange Juice
• 30 Whole Cloves
• 16 Cinnamon Sticks
• 16 Star Anise
• 21oz Brandy 
• 10oz Honey

Heat all ingredients over medium heat until it comes to a light simmer, and all items are fully incorporated. Let simmer for 20 minutes and then remove from heat and let cool. Strain out solids from liquid and store. Pour into a witch’s caldron. Line up Irish coffee glasses, each garnished with a cinnamon stick and orange wheel, where guests can serve themselves as they please.

Remember how I said I have a love-hate relationship with Halloween? Well, if there’s just one thing I can pinpoint that I love about Halloween, it’s the candy. As a 30-something year old woman, I can’t quite be showing up to trick or treat anymore, but I can make a candy-inspired cocktail. Insert the R.I.P., or Reese’s in Pieces, named after my favorite candy combo: chocolate and peanut butter. You can find this cocktail, which was created by Beverage Director Demi Natoli, on the menu at White Limozeen in Nashville, Tennessee. But should you not be able to travel that way, here’s a riff to create it at home, even in batched style.

Ingredients:

• 1 750 ml bottle of Purity Vodka
• 25 oz of Cold Brew Coffee
• ¼ of a 750 ml Bottle of Creme de Cacao
• ¼ of a 750 ml Bottle of Borghetti Espresso Liqueur
• Peanut Butter Cold Foam
• 1 Carton Soft whip Cold Foam
• 6 tbs Peanut Butter Cocoa Powder

The night before serving, chill Purity Vodka, Borghetti Espresso Liqueur, and the Creme de Cacao in the freezer for at least 12 hours.

Shortly before the party begins, remove from the freezer, and pour all ingredients into a giant martini glass. You can also serve in a punch bowl. Carefully stir with a spoon to ensure they’re all incorporated. Shake soft whip cold foam and peanut butter in a metal shaker filled with ice. You will have to repeat this process to get enough cold foam for the drink. Right before the party begins, pour the cold foam on top to give it a frothy effect, making it look like a giant espresso martini. Top with espresso beans, crumbled Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, and Reese’s Pieces.

Use a serving spoon to serve into martini glasses. Optional: line the glasses with chocolate syrup and peanut butter.

A margarita is my death-wish drink, so you’ll seldom read a cocktail story written by me that doesn’t include some type of variation on one. For Halloween, I’m taking some inspiration from Adventure Time Bar in Denver, Colorado, a new rotating-themed immersive cocktail experience with 90-minute ticketed visits. Sam Wood, the owner of Adventure Time Bar, says this spiced pear marg is “like drinking fall in a glass.”

Ingredients

• 1 750 mL Bottle of El Tequileño Blanco Tequila
• 17 oz St. George’s Spiced Pear Liqueur
• 22 oz Pear Nectar or Juice
• 8 oz Agave
• 8 oz Fresh Lime Juice
• 1 tsp Salt
• 4 oz Applesauce 

Mix all ingredients in a punch bowl with ice. Garnish with thinly sliced apples and cinnamon sticks right in the bowl, so guests can choose how much or how little extra garnish they want. Have glasses lined with a cinnamon sugar rim for serving.

I’m spending the fall and early winter in Italy, so when I heard about Holiday Vodka from the Piedmont region, made from 100% soft Italian wheat that’s proofed with alpine spring water from Fonti Bauda, I got my hands on a bottle quickly. Created by Giancarlo Mancino, the founder of Mancino Vermouth and Rinomato Aperitivo, to name a few, The Wicked Apple makes even batched cocktails a moment of elegance and sophistication.

Ingredients:

• 14 oz Holiday Vodka
• 7 oz Calvados
• 7 oz Green Apple & Sage Shrub*
• 5 ½ oz Mancino Vermouth Secco
• ¼ oz 20% Saline Solution

*Green Apple & Sage Shrub (small batch, ~3 oz)

• 1 Medium Green Apple (peeled, cored, diced)
• ¼ Cup Sugar
• 1 ¾ oz Apple Cider Vinegar
• 3–4 Fresh Sage Leaves

First, prepare the Green Apple & Sage Shrub. Muddle diced apples with sugar until the juice is released. Add sage, and lightly muddle. Next, add the apple cider vinegar, and stir. If the mixture seems too thick, add water accordingly. Macerate four to six hours at room temperature, and then strain through a fine mesh strainer or cheese cloth. This mixture will hold in the refrigerator for two to three weeks.

For the cocktail itself, the night prior to your Halloween party, add all ingredients into a quart container, and chill in the refrigerator overnight. When it comes time to serve, use 3 oz martini glasses. Garnish with a sage leaf.

Years ago, I visited Barbados for the annual Barbados Food & Rum Festival, which is, coincidentally, held every fall. It was during that trip that I learned if you really want to get a party started, just whip out some rum. With Barbados being the birthplace of the spirit, I now try to only buy rum that comes from the island. Bumbu XO is one I’ve tried recently, and after messing around with some ingredients, I found an ideal Halloween-inspired rum punch.

Ingredients:

• 24 oz Bumbu XO
• 24 oz Belaire Gold (to top just before serving)
• 30 oz Apple Cider
• 6 oz Freshly Squeezed Orange Juice
• 6 oz Cranberry Juice

In a large pitcher or punch bowl, combine the Bumbu XO, Apple Cider, orange juice, and cranberry juice. Stir well to mix, and chill for at least one hour before serving. As guests arrive, serve in a rocks glass with ice, and top each glass with about 2 oz of Belaire Gold. Finally, add a sprinkle of cinnamon.