Holiday Gin and Tonic

I love festive cocktails, and this Holiday Gin and Tonic recipe is one of my favorites! Cranberry and pomegranate are some of my go-to flavors for the holidays, and they definitely bring the cozy Christmas feel to this drink. It's refreshing, easy and perfect for the holiday season!

This is a great drink for late fall and early winter, when fresh cranberries are in season. They always make such a simple and festive garnish, and rosemary too! This would make a great Thanksgiving dinner cocktail, or for anytime during the Christmas season.

Looking for more refreshing Christmas cocktails? Try out the spiced cranberry Mistletoe Martini, the delicious Cranberry Whiskey Sour or the simple and easy Cranberry Margarita!

Ingredients

This festive G&T only has a handful of ingredients! First, of course, you'll need the gin and tonic.

Make sure to get a tonic that you actually like the flavor of, since some of them can be very harsh and bitter. I thought I was not a tonic person until I tried Fever Tree tonic water! So good! Another tasty brand is Fentimans tonic water.

You'll also need to have some pomegranate juice and cranberry juice, plus either a fresh lime (preferably) or bottled lime juice.

If you want, you can add the optional fresh cranberry and rosemary garnish. I definitely recommend at least the rosemary because it gives the drink a really nice evergreen aroma while drinking!

Substitutions

Missing some of the ingredients? Here are some substitution ideas! First, if you're not a gin person, you can definitely use either vodka or tequila in its place for this recipe.

If you don't have cranberry juice, add a little extra lime and a little more of the tonic water instead.

If you don't have the pomegranate juice, you can use orange juice in its place. Or, you can use more cranberry juice, plus ½ ounce of grenadine syrup. If you use the syrup, you may want to stir it a little more to make sure the syrup dissolves fully.

For the garnish, if you can't find fresh cranberries, you can use pomegranate arils (the little bits from the inside of a pomegranate). Just keep in mind that the arils will sink, whereas the cranberries float on top.

Equipment

Since this drink is made in the glass, you don't need much in the way of equipment! Mostly just a jigger to measure everything, a bar spoon for stirring, and the serving glass itself.

For the glass, I used a modern style white wine glass. A large wine glass is perfect for this, but you can also use a tall Collins glass.

Instructions

Start out by adding ice to your serving glass, and then adding in the gin and pomegranate juice.

Add in the cranberry juice and lime juice next.

If you're using them, add the cranberries to the glass, and then pour in the tonic water.

Give everything a gentle stir with a bar spoon. Then, add the rosemary garnish, and serve!

Hint: If you can, refrigerate your ingredients before making the drink! This will help keep your ice from melting too fast.

Top tip

If you want to make a big batch of these cocktails for a holiday party, the best way to do it is to mix together the gin and juices in a pitcher, and keep them in the fridge.

When you are ready to serve, pour 3¼ ounces of the gin mixture over ice, and then top with the tonic water. Makes a great easy party drink!