13 Cocktail Pitchers to start your New Year party with a bang!

Good cocktails and good company are exactly how we plan to ring in our New Year, but nothing takes the fun out of your evening like being stuck on bar duty all night. The beauty of pitchers is that they can be mixed up in batches in advance, leaving you free to enjoy the party and let your hair down!

For an extra touch of fun, you can up your icecube game by freezing fruits and garnishes inside, and if you really want to wow your guests you can take the time to sugar rim the glasses (or even set up a sugaring station!). 

All the recipes can be scaled up for the size of your crowd, as can most single drink recipes - have a look through our cocktail tag and mix up a batch of your favourite cocktail from this year for your guests. Avoid recipes that include eggs as they need to be shaken (and might be left out for a while,) and mix in fizzy ingredients such as prosecco and club soda when you are ready to serve.

Recipe

1. In a large jug, combine the elderflower liqueur and the gin, then add your grapefruit juice.
2. Grab your cocktail stirrer and mix thoroughly.
3. Toss in a generous portion of ice and stir until you feel the chill as you grasp the jug. Garnish with wheels of grapefruit.
3. Before serving, add a healthy splash of IPA to the jug, or – if your guests are feeling brave – leave an open bottle on the table and let them top up their own drinks. Serve on a bar with ice and tumblers.

Ingredients

285ml Shetland Reel Filska Gin
510ml of golden or pink grapefruit
45ml Elderflower Liqueur
1 large bottle India Pale Ale
Grapefruit wheels

Ingredients:

500ml Tarquins Christmas gin
300ml pomegranate juice
250ml lemon juice
1L ginger ale
Thyme, Mint and Pomegranate seeds, to garnish.

Method:

1. Add your gin, pomegranate and lemon juice to a jug.
2. Stir for 10 seconds, fill the jug with ice and top with ginger ale.
3. Garnish with fresh thyme, mint and pomegranate seeds.

Recipe
1. Add rhubarb and syrup*, fresh lime juice and gin of choice to an ice filled punch bowl.
2. Pour in soda water and stir. Add slices of fresh lime.
3. Serve with ice and garnish with more lime.

*Raspberry and Rhubarb Syrup Recipe
1. Add rhubarb, raspberry, sugar, lemon juice and water to a large pan.
2. Bring to the boil then leave to simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Take pan off the heat then leave to infuse for 30 minutes.
4. Strain the syrup through a sieve and it’s ready to go.

Ingredients
1/2 cup Fresh lime juice
2 cups Gin
2 cups Rhubarb and Raspberry Syrup*
1L soda water
Fresh lime slices

R&R Syrup Ingredients
2 cups chopped rhubarb
1 cup frozen raspberries
1 cup sugar
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 cups water

Recipe
1. Stir hibiscus syrup* with ginger ale and sparkling wine.
2. Garnish if desired, and serve with ice.

Hibiscus Syrup Recipe
1. Combine water, hibiscus blossoms, and ginger in a pot.
2. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
3. Turn off heat and stir in sugar.
4. Let cool, strain, and chill. 

Ingredients
4 cups chilled ginger ale
2 750mlL bottles chilled champagne, sparkling white wine, or sparkling mineral water
Optional: garnishes of mint, lemon or lime slices

Hibiscus Syrup Ingredients
4 1/2 cups water
1 cup dried hibiscus blossoms
2-inch piece of ginger, thinly sliced
1 cup sugar

Recipe
1. Add the apple juice, lemon juice and cinnamon sticks to the pan
2. Allow to simmer and add the orange slices
3. Add the sloe gin and stir

Ingredients
1L Apple Juice
Juice of 4 Lemons
2 Cinnamon Sticks
2 Sliced Oranges
300ml Sloe Gin

To make ahead, mix everything except the club soda and ice, then refrigerate overnight. A night in the fridge will also help the strawberries add more flavor and colour to the drink for that rosy festive hue!

Recipe
1. Muddle the sugar and limes in a pitcher.
2. Set aside 6 to 8 small strawberries and make a small slice in their tips. 
3. Hull and slice the remaining strawberries and muddle the slices with the sugar and lime juice.
4. Stir in the gin and club soda and pack the pitcher full of ice.
5. Add mint sprigs to garnish.
6. Garnish glasses with a strawberry, slotted onto the edge of the glass.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 limes, juiced (about 1/4 cup)
1 pound fresh strawberries
2 cups gin
3 cups club soda
Fresh mint sprigs, for garnish

Recipe
1. Combine Gin, Aperol, lemon juice, lime juice, grapefruit juice and sparkling wine in a large bowl.
2. Add 8 dashes of orange bitters and stir thoroughly.
3. Garnish with orange slices.

Ingredients
500ml Gin
350ml Aperol
50ml Lemon juice
50ml Lime juice
75ml Grapefruit juice
750ml Sparkling wine
Orange bitters

Recipe
1. Fill a large jug with ice and add gin, blueberry and lavender syrup*, lime juice and soda.
2. Serve with blueberries.

*Blueberry and Lavender Syrup Recipe

1. Add water, blueberries, sugar and lavender sprigs to a large pan.
2. Bring to the boil then simmer for 15 minutes.
3. Take the pan off the heat and leave to infuse for 30 minutes.
4. Strain the syrup through a sieve and it’s ready to go.

Ingredients
500ml Gin
200ml Blueberry & Lavender syrup*
70ml Fresh lime juice
1L Soda water

Blueberry and Lavender Syrup
250ml Water
250g Blueberries
250g Sugar
8 Sprigs Lavender

Recipe
1. Mix together the gin and pomegranate juice in a large bowl.
2. Top up with Prosecco when ready to serve.
3. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and serve with champagne glasses.

Ingredients
75 ml Gin
150 ml Pomegranate juice
300 ml Prosecco
Pomegranate seeds, to garnish

Recipe
1. Muddle the rosemary, sliced lemons and sugar in the base of a large jug.
2. Add gin, Elderflower Liqueur, fresh lemon juice and soda water to the jug, then stir thoroughly.
3. Serve with ice and garnish with slices of lemon.

Ingredients
200ml Gin
200ml Elderflower Liqueur
100ml Fresh lemon juice
250ml Soda Water
30g Sugar
10 Sprigs of Rosemary
2 thinly sliced Lemons

Recipe
1. Mix lime juice, gin, elderberry liqueur, pomegranate juice and agave syrup and refrigerate before serving. 

Sugar Rim
Spread raw sugar on a small plate in an even layer. Use a lime wedge to moisten the rim of the martini glasses and dip into the raw sugar. 

Ingredients
1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice, strained (from about 8 limes)
1 cup gin
1/2 cup elderberry liqueur
1/2 cup pure pomegranate juice
1/4 cup agave syrup
3 tablespoons raw sugar
Lime wedges for garnish

Recipe
1. Add pear puree*, Gin, honey and hot water to a large jug and stir thoroughly. Leave to cool.
2. Pour into an ice filled pitcher and top with prosecco to taste
3. Garnish with lemon slices.

Pear Puree Recipe
1. Pre-heat the oven to 190C/Gas mark 5.
2. Peel and core two pears and bake for approximately 20 minutes, until the bottom side begins to caramelise.
3. Add to blender with fresh lemon juice and ground cloves.

Ingredients
75ml pear puree*
450ml Gin
60ml Honey
60ml hot water
1 bottle Prosecco
Lemon, to garnish

Pear Puree Ingredients
2 pear
3 1/2 Tbsp Fresh lemon juice
1/4 Tsp Ground cloves



Recipe
1. Muddle lemon peel strips and sugar in large bowl.
2. Add 1 1/4 cups raspberries and mash to blend.
3. Pour in sloe gin, lemon juice, and rum.
4. Add ice cubes; stir to blend.
5. Refrigerate punch 20 minutes.
6. Add Champagne when ready to serve and stir to blend
7. Garnish with lemon slices and remaining raspberries.

Ingredients
Peel from 4 lemons (removed in strips with vegetable peeler)
1/3 cup superfine sugar
2 cups fresh raspberries, divided
3 cups Sloe Gin
2 cups fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 cups Coruba dark Jamaican rum
2 cups chilled Brut Champagne
Lemon slices