This is fall in a glass, or a potable pumpkin pie” 

" by by David Kaplan, Nick Fauchald & Alex Day.

Patois Punch 

martini with lychee eye garnish and dry ice in food52 test kitchen

Looking for a Halloween cocktail that’s as delicious as it is dramatic? This lychee and Chambord martini comes with a haunting twist: a floating lychee ‘eyeball’ garnish.

Spooky Lychee Martini

Four Vagabonds is the intimate cocktail bar and lounge at the historic Dearborn Inn, drawing from the legendary road trips taken by Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, John Burroughs, and Harvey Firestone between 1915 and 1924. This fall, the bar leans into spooky season with the Phantom Nevermore, a violet-hued blend of vanilla vodka, elderflower, and blackberry. A tribute to legendary poet Edgar Allan Poe’s dark words, the cocktail pays homage to Dearborn Inn’s soon to launch Replica Homes – including one inspired by Poe’s real life cottage – which will offer guests a full immersion into his brooding, melancholic vision throughout the holiday season.

dark pink drink in cocktail glass with black salt rim and lime garnish 

Inspired by Edgar Allan Poe, the Phantom Nevermore blends vanilla vodka, elderflower, and blackberry for a moody, elegant Halloween cocktail.

Phantom Nevermore 

close-up of dark purple blackberry cocktail in glass with blackberry garnish

Sip on the Blood Moon Sangria this Halloween—a rich mix of Pinot Noir, crème de cassis, and brandy served over ice. Deep, fruity, and perfectly spooky for any Halloween party.

Blood Moon Sangria

Witch, Please is as spellbinding as it sounds. With its deep violet shimmer, sparkling bubbles and bright pop of lemon and elderflower, it’s a potion of elegance with a wink of Halloween mischief

Franco Diaz, Director of Food & Beverage at 

purple spooky cocktail in coupe class in the Langham Chicago

Shake up Halloween with the Witch, Please cocktail. Butterfly pea flower gin, lemon, elderflower, and sparkling Prosecco create a shimmering violet drink that’s both elegant and playfully magical.

Witch, Please 

dark pink mezcal cocktail with black salt rim on table

Mix up a Spooky Mezcalita for Halloween. This smoky mezcal cocktail with tropical citrus syrup, beet juice, and a black salt rim is the perfect balance of eerie and refreshing.

Spooky Mezcalita  

“Elphaba’s Spell is filled with charming contrasts. The warmth of the pear and ginger lures you in, while the Chartreuse and basil remind you that every good spell has its edge.”

green spooky cocktail in punch bowl of dry ice

Cast a delicious spell this Halloween with Elphaba’s Spell cocktail. A mix of pear & ginger vodka, green Chartreuse, basil, and citrus creates a bewitching balance of sweet, herbal, and crisp flavors.

Elphaba’s Spell  

Inspired by a mezcal Negroni, with earthy hibiscus notes and a touch of cacao, giving the cocktail its deep, blood-red hue.

José María “Chema” Dondé, Beverage Director at 

festive hibiscus mezcal cocktail in glass with foam

This El Dracula cocktail blends hibiscus-infused mezcal, cacao liqueur, and Campari for a smoky, blood-red twist on a Negroni. Perfect for Halloween or any dark and moody night.

El Dracula

red cocktail in coupe glass with lemon peel garnish

This deep, moody cocktail blends dark rum, pomegranate liqueur, honey, and lime for a drink that’s equal parts elegant and eerie. 

The Velvet Séance

white coconut cocktail in high ball glass

This all-white Halloween cocktail blends vodka, coconut cream, crème de cacao, and lime for a hauntingly elegant sip. Refreshing, smooth, and perfect for your spooky soirée.

Casper's Kiss

charcoal dark margarita with red rim for Halloween cocktail series

This easy Charcoal Margarita gets its dark color from activated charcoal—making it the perfect Halloween cocktail that’s equal parts eerie and refreshing.

Charcoal Margarita 

two glasses of margaritas with salt rim and purple flower garnish

Whip up the iconic Practical Magic midnight margaritas with this easy frozen cocktail recipe. Made with tequila, lime, and a pinch of magic—perfect for your next movie night.

Midnight Margaritas

I would have assumed this drink came from the ’20s or ’30s—I don’t know, it just sounds like a code name used by men in long coats during Prohibition. The fact that penicillin itself wasn’t invented until 1928 doesn’t really sway my belief here. It still feels like it should be ordered under one’s breath with some sort of continental accent. But in fact, as far as cocktails go, this is a really new cocktail. Like, so new that if this cocktail were a person, it still couldn’t legally order a cocktail in America.


Thanks to the single malt splash, this cocktail announces itself before you’ve even taken a sip. It’s serious and it's strong. But that’s misleading—once your nose has calmed down and you’re actually sipping this drink, it’s actually quite fresh and tart with a warming sweetness. And it’s incredibly well named, as almost everything in it is something that would remedy the common cold. Ginger? Check. Honey? Check. Lemon? Yup. Scotch? I mean, to some people, for sure. So once again, here I am offering you an essential health aid in the form of a cocktail. You’re welcome.

Both Sides of the Glass: Paired Cocktails and Mocktails to Toast Any Taste

penicillin cocktail from Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka's cocktail and mocktail book, both sides of the glass

Discover this tart Penicillin cocktail with ginger, honey, lemon, and Scotch. From NPH and David Burtka's book, Both Sides of the Glass.

Neil's Penicillin

The Caipirinha is to Cachaça, a Brazilian spirit made from fermented and distilled sugarcane, what the Old Fashioned is to whiskey. I like to think of these simple, spirit-forward cocktails as frames: just a few key ingredients added to temper and highlight the core spirit. In the case of the Caipirinha, sugar and lime bring out the grassy, slightly funky character of the Cachaça, leaving a drink that feels somehow both stripped down and complete. The undissolved sugar granules floating around the drink are a key element here. They add texture and the drink becomes sweeter over time. Adding a little extra sugar right on top of the drink only enhances the experience.

The Caipirinha, sugar and lime bring out the grassy, slightly funky character of the Cachaça, leaving a drink that feels somehow both stripped down and complete.

Caipirinha

Why just eat pickles when you can drink them too? This fried pickle martini from Porchlight bar in West Chelsea, NYC is the ultimate savory martini.

fried pickle martini in a coupe at Porchlight bar in NYC

Why just eat pickles when you can drink them too? This fried pickle martini from Porchlight bar in Chelsea, NYC is the ultimate savory martini.

Fried Pickle Martini from Porchlight

Think of this as the lovechild of a dirty martini and a gin and tonic. It’s briny, bubbly, and just the right amount of savory—basically, your go-to G&T’s more interesting cousin. The olive brine brings that salty kick we crave in a martini, but the splash of tonic keeps things light and refreshing. Whether you go for gin or vodka is totally up to you, but don’t skip the garnish. A few olives make it feel like a real cocktail moment, even if it only took five minutes to make.

This dirty gin and tonic combines gin (or vodka), dry vermouth, and olive brine for a savory, martini-inspired twist on the classic cocktail—topped with tonic and olives.

Dirty Martini Tonic

Berry Gin and Tonic

Weeni Martini 

Frozen Paper Plane

This herbal and smokey riff on a margarita is a perfect springtime sipper, but your largest hurdle to making this might be finding Green Chartreuse. In the last few years, the Carthusian monks that make the liqueur have slowed production. Although their recipe is closely guarded, there are a number of close substitutes now readily available. My preferred is Faccia Bruto Centerbe but keep an eye out for Dolin Génépy le Chamois Liqueur as well. 

Chartreuse Margarita

, we developed a refreshing strawberry and St. Germain spritz perfect for summer. It’s incredibly easy to make and if you want to plan ahead, you can prep the strawberries the night before and let them macerate in the fridge overnight.

Hotter in the Hamptons Strawberry Spritz with Tinx

An all-agave riff on the classic Penicillin cocktail invented in the mid-2000s by Sam Ross at the Milk & Honey bar in New York City. This version, by chef Michael Voltaggio, swaps the original blended scotch for Marcado 28 Reposado Tequila and features a smokey mezcal float. This is just as good served up (in a chilled coupe) or on the rocks.



Penicillin by Michael Voltaggio

This may not resemble the Old Fashioned you're used to, but they do things a little differently in Wisconsin. This is a variation that stems back to the late 1800s, when German immigrants living in the Cheesehead State gravitated towards brandy over whiskey as a base spirit in their cocktails. It’s common in bars and supper clubs across Wisconsin, and bartenders tend to be a little loose with their pours—often free-pouring or letting the jigger overflow. If you want to channel that spirit, feel free to go a little over the standard 2 ounces, adding up to 2.5 ounces of spirit. The traditional brandy of choice for this drink is the California made Korbel, the domestic option that would have been available at the time of its inception. That said, this is going to be just as if not more delicious with another brandy, or secretly a nice cognac.

Wisconsin Old Fashioned

Tiki cocktails are making a comeback, and few embody their sweet, fruity, and boozy balance like the Jungle Bird. Created in the 1970s at the Aviary Bar in the Kuala Lumpur Hilton, this modern classic gets its name from the tropical birds housed nearby. Unlike most tiki drinks, the Jungle Bird features a bold twist—Campari—adding a bitter edge that balances the pineapple’s sweetness. The result? A refreshing, complex cocktail that feels both tropical and sophisticated.

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