Cocktails for New Year’s Eve: Cheers to ‘22

Well, party season is officially in full swing, so we thought we’d take this opportunity to inspire you with some thoughts on celebrating New Year’s and incorporating aquavit into your cocktail creations.

2022 was a big year for Downtime Cocktails—a particularly apt year in which to launch Batch 22, our flagship brand. We’re going to be celebrating with friends and family for the next few weeks, and—in between sipping some of our favorite creations of the past year (see website for Ebenzer Tea-Zer and Cinnamon Hug)—we’ll also be trying out some new New Year’s Eve drink ideas.

You won’t be surprised to know that our cocktail ideas all utilize Batch 22 Classic Gold in some way. Many of these recipes are already up on our website (drinkbatch22.com), but some are still in development. We thought, rather than bombard you with tons of recipes, we’d outline some basic ideas and parameters that we’re using to create new holiday drinks in the hope that they will inspire you to invent your very own cocktails for new year’s eve. Here are a few thoughts:

Add Sparkle

Lots of our basic Batch 22 cocktail recipes include some kind of sparkling component, whether it’s tonic, soda, bitter lemon, or ginger beer. These are great year-round mixers that work in an infinite number of cocktails, but at this time of year, you might want to consider substituting some sparkling wine for the usual mixers. Prosecco, Champagne, California Sparkling, Spanish Cava, and even Moscato di Asti: They all mix beautifully with Batch 22 and other components, and they all add a special holiday sparkle to a cocktail. Batch and Prosecco is a light and lovely drink.

Use Juices

Juices are a great way to add concentrated fruitiness to your cocktails; we love to mix the sparkling wine component with a range of fruit juices when making Batch cocktails. Orange juice, apple juice, lemonade, cherry, pomegranate, and cranberry juice are our top picks in this area. Like the idea of Batch and Prosecco? You might like it even more if you add a splash of cherry juice (see our recipe for the Wedding Vow on the website).

Make Punch!

For most of our cocktail development ideas, we’re thinking about single-serving cocktails, but the holidays are a great time to think bigger. Making up bowls of punch for guests is a festive and easy way to serve delicious cocktails to a large number of people. When you think about devising a punch, we always recommend including some kind of sparkling component—the easiest ones being Prosecco, Sparkling California wine, or a Brut Cava. A sparkling rose will also work perfectly in most recipes, and it will add beautiful color to the final mix.

Here’s a great punch base upon which to layer other flavors: 1 Bottle of Batch 22 Classic Gold, 2 bottles of sparkling wine, or (if you want to make it less potent) 1 bottle of sparkling wine and 1 bottle of sparkling water, such as San Pellegrino.

Think about adding a flavored syrup (rose cordial, rosemary, grapefruit, orange) and/or some extra flavoring components, such as cinnamon sticks, vanilla beans, or slices of citrus.

Here’s a favorite punch recipe of ours to get you thinking—it’s actually a variation of a punch we made for a special event at Collins & Coupe, our favorite cocktail accessory store in San Diego:

New Year’s ’22 Punch (serves about 15-20)

1 Bottle Batch 22

2 Bottles Prosecco or Sparkling Rose

¼ cup Rosemary syrup

2 cups Lemonade

12 (or so) Shakes of Orange Bitters

Mix of Sliced Citrus (blend lemon, lime, grapefruit, and orange)

Mix all ingredients in a punch bowl with ice.

Here’s wishing you all the best for the New Year! And Cheers to ’22!