Make a ginger cranberry gin cocktail for a holiday party or quiet night home by the fire. With just 3 simple ingredients, it’s as easy to make a single as it is to make a large batch. Garnish with sugared cranberries and serve in a pretty glass, and you’ve got your new favorite festive cocktail!
I love to enjoy an occasional cocktail at home, but my one requirement is that it be simple. While some feel comfortable playing mixologist, I’d rather play around with just a couple base liquors, either tequila or gin, and then add in a fun mixer or two. This cocktail is perfect for this time of year that is so filled with busyness and hustle and bustle. It’s got the festive flavors of ginger and bright red cranberry, and quickly mixes up so you don’t waste precious time. I think you’re going to love this drink and may become your favorite cocktail for the holiday season. Serve it with a elegant and easy Christmas charcuterie board to get the party started right!
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Why you’ll love this simple cranberry gin cocktail
- Perfect balance of seasonal flavors. This drink is for the person who doesn’t love sugary sweet cocktails, but loves simple and clean flavors.
- Can be mixed up in 3 minutes or less. Shaking this up couldn’t be easier, or quicker!
- Easy to make large batches in advance for a holiday cocktail party. Who wants to get stuck playing bar maid all night?
- Gorgeous and impressive drink! With the beautiful red color and fun fresh garnishes, this baby is begging to be photographed and shared.
Gin Christmas cocktail ingredients
- A good quality gin – look for a London Dry gin. Bombay Sapphire, Beefeater and Tanqueray are all classic gin options that are free of added sugars or flavors that will distract from the natural hint of juniper botanicals.
- Ginger beer – not ginger ale, which is lighter in flavor but also sweeter. We want to limit the sweetness but hype up that punchy ginger flavor. Q brand, Fever Tree and the seasonal ginger beer found once a year at Trader Joe’s are my favorites.
- Cranberry juice – 100% pure cranberry juice preferred, not cranberry juice cocktail, which has added sugar or corn syrup.
- Seasonal garnishes – Fresh cranberries steeped in sugar water. Or a dehydrated orange slice or a fresh rosemary sprig. All add pizazz to liven up this super easy cocktail.
How to mix up this gin cocktail recipe
This drink is basically a mix of a Moscow mule and a Foghorn. But with gin instead of vodka and cran juice instead of lime juice. Because of the fizzy ginger beer, you’ll want to stir this drink rather than make it in a cocktail shaker. You can make it right in your cocktail glass or in a cocktail mixing glass.
Add 2 ounces of gin, 4 ounces of ginger beer, and a splash of cranberry juice, about ½ an ounce, to a cocktail glass. Stir, then add a few ice cubes. Top with a cranberry garnish or sprig of fresh rosemary. If you wanted to get extra fancy, you could also do a sugared rim.
This drink has the best flavor and is the perfect holiday drink. The natural tartness of the cranberries plays off the sweetness of the ginger beer and the botanical flavors of the gin just perfectly. If you love all things cranberry like I do, you’re going to love this simple but delicious cranberry gin drink.
FAQ’s
You know, some people say gin is really just juniper flavored vodka. While that’s not completely accurate, the liquors do swap out pretty effortlessly in most drinks, so go ahead and go for it if you prefer vodka.
Yes, since the tartness of pomegranate juice and unsweetened cranberry juice or so similar. You can also can add pomegranate arils for a garnish.
If you use straight cranberry juice and a good quality ginger beer without a ton of added sugar, this drink isn’t too bad. But if you’d like to cut it even more or even cut some of the gin to lower the ABV content, just cut it with some club soda. Swap out 2 ounces of ginger beer for 2 ounces of your favorite soda water.
Recipe tip – making a batch for a crowd?
To fill a standard 80 ounce pitcher, use these measurements. Fill it with 40 ounces of ginger beer, 20 ounces of gin and about ¼ cup of cranberry juice. Fill with ice and stir. This will produce about 6-8 cocktails depending on the size of glass you use.
You’re going to love this easy drink and have so much fun enjoying it at your holiday gatherings. I think it would also make the perfect Happy New Year cocktail! Let me know if you have any questions! If you have a chance to leave a comment and/or rating below, please do! Happy holidays!
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Ginger Cranberry Gin Cocktail
Ingredients
- 4 ounces gin
- 8 ounces ginger beer
- 1 ounce cranberry juice
- sugared cranberries for garnish
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a cocktail mixing glass and stir. Add ice to cocktail serving glasses and fill with ice. Pour mixed drink equally between 2 glasses and garnish with cranberries or rosemary sprig.
Lori says
As a big Moscow mule fan, you had me at ginger beer! These are sooo good and I love the twist of using gin instead of vodka! Great recipe!