What’s an end-of-summer party without some punch? Here are four refreshing punch recipes for a crowd from Food & Wine magazine.
Sunset punch
Ingredients:
- 8 ounces bourbon
- 8 ounces white vermouth
- 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice, plus lemon slices for garnish
- 1/4 cup simple syrup**
- 12 ounces chilled ginger beer
Preparation:
In a punch bowl, combine the bourbon, vermouth, lemon juice and syrup. Add the ginger beer and lemon slices and serve over ice.
** To make simple syrup, heat 1/4 cup of sugar with 1/4 cup of water and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Let cool.
Cajun punch
A salute to the flavors of New Orleans, this cocktail spices up Napoleon House's Pimm's Cup (Pimm's No. 1, lemonade and 7-Up) with a splash of Tabasco and a generous dose of rum or vodka.
- 12 ounces white rum or vodka
- 4 ounces Pimm's No. 1
- 8 ounces fresh lemon juice
- 4 ounces simple syrup
- 1/2 tablespoon Tabasco
- Ice
- 8 ounces chilled 7-Up
- Thin lemon wheels, for garnish (optional)
Preparation:
In a large resealable container, combine all of the ingredients except ice, the 7-Up and the lemon wheels. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour. Cover tightly and shake, then pour into an ice-filled pitcher. Strain into ice-filled rocks glasses, stir in the 7-Up and garnish with lemon wheels.
Mother's rum punch
Classicist bartenders have resurrected the centuries-old ritual of the formal punch service. Here, Philip Ward of New York's Death & Co. makes a potent concoction named after the old British slang for gin.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup chilled club soda
- 1 1/2 cups gin
- 1 1/2 cups fresh grapefruit juice, plus 3 thinly sliced grapefruit wheels, for garnish
- 3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 3/4 cup sweet vermouth
- 2 1/4 cups chilled Champagne or sparkling wine
- Ice
Preparation:
In a large pitcher, stir the sugar with the club soda until dissolved. Stir in the gin, grapefruit and lemon juices and sweet vermouth and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour. Transfer the punch to a large bowl. Gently stir in the Champagne and float the grapefruit wheels on top. Serve in punch glasses over ice.
Sparkling pomegranate punch
This bubbly, sweet-tart cocktail combines sparkling wine, dessert wine and deep-red pomegranate juice.
Ingredients:
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup pomegranate juice
- Two 750-milliliter bottles sparkling wine, chilled
- 3/4 cup late-harvest white wine, such as late-harvest Riesling, chilled
- 2 oranges, thinly sliced crosswise
- 1 cup diced fresh pineapple (1/2 inch)
- 1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
- Ice cubes, for serving
Preparation:
In a punch bowl, dissolve the sugar in the pomegranate juice, stirring vigorously. Add the sparkling wine and late-harvest white wine, then add the orange slices, diced pineapple and pomegranate seeds. Serve the sparkling pomegranate punch over ice cubes.
More from Food & Wine: