Halloween Drinks to Show Off Your Spooky Spirit
Are you ready for a night of spooky fun? It’s important to set the mood when you’re hosting a party, and with Halloween coming up, you have license to be creative. Whether you’re planning a family friendly gathering or celebrating Halloween spirit with, well, spirits, the punch bowl is a key element of any gathering, so don’t leave it to the last minute! Here are some tips, tricks, and ideas for mixing up some Halloween drinks that will make your night a blast.
First thing’s first, consider your palette. Color is a quick and simple way to convey a theme, and sometimes it’s all you need.
- Red drinks like cranberry juice, pomegranate juice, and red wine are perfect for suggesting blood, and you can mix flavors to create something like Walker Blood Sangria from Cravings of a Lunatic
- Orange is a signature Halloween color, so this sweet, slushy, and non-alcoholic Halloween Orange Party Punch Recipe from Taste of Home is great for parties with kids.
- From witches to zombies to radioactive slime, green is popular with kids. Yoda Soda from Food.com is a great green drinks they’ll love.
- Associated with power, mystery, and magic, purple is a great choice for a spooky look. Grape juice or soda will work for the young ones, but adults might like their purple drinks with vodka or other spirits (like Homemade Hooplah’s Purple People Eater Cocktail, for example).
- If you want to make black drinks for Halloween, there’s nothing more unsettling than The Blackbeard from Honestly Yum—its opaque color comes from squid ink! For the less adventurous, you can make cocktails (like Julep’s Black Heart) out of black vodka instead.
- Create your own recipes and give them fun names to fit the theme! Use colored liquor, sports drinks and sodas, gelatin mix or even food coloring to mix up the perfect creepy beverages for your party.
Once you have a base to work off, there are a few things (besides alcohol) that you can add to any Halloween drink for instant spooky spirit.
- Gummy garnishes, like brains, worms, and other creepy crawlies, are both readily available and easy to implement. You can also use black licorice or other spooky candy.
- Make a frozen hand to float in the punch bowl. Fill a disposable plastic or rubber glove (make sure it’s not the kind with a powder-coated inside) with water or juice, leaving room for expansion. Seal it with a rubber band, then freeze it. When it’s time to party, remove the glove (use a paring knife or dip it in warm water), and you have the perfect creepy ice cube to cool down your drinks.
- Dry ice is solid carbon dioxide that creates a smoky, fog-like effect when dropped in liquid. It’s perfect for Halloween drinks, turning punch bowls into witches’ cauldrons or mad scientists’ experiments. Even though it’s easy to use, it does require a few safe handling instructions, so find out How to Use Dry Ice in Halloween Cocktails from Betty Crocker.
- Edible luster dust and certain novelty liquors will add a magical shimmer to your Halloween cocktails. Check out The Witch’s Heart from The Flavor Bender and Black Magic from Elle Talk for some fun examples.
Want to go even further? With these creative ways to pour a cocktail, your drinks can double as Halloween decorations.
- From HGTV, the Blood Sucker Halloween Cocktail Recipe uses strawberry puree to mimic streaks of blood, and the Bloody Brain Shooter Recipe creates a layer of fake brain matter with Bailey’s Irish Cream.
- For something a little less gory, there’s the layered Candy Corn Martini from Food Fanatic, which takes advantage of different liquid densities to create a distinctive and attractively striped drink.
- If you’re not a fan of candy corn, you can Learn How to Create Layered Cocktails and Shots from the Spruce, and even design your own with help from their Specific Gravity Chart of various popular liquors. (You can also create layered drinks without alcohol; just pour the ingredient with the highest sugar content first). After a little practice, you’ll be able to turn your refreshments table into an artistic masterpiece.
