Cranberry Orange Whiskey Sour

The time to get festive is nigh! And by festive, I mean boozy. Whiskey Punch is a tart and tangy holiday cocktail that’s easy to make for one or one dozen. A traditional whiskey sour gets punched up with cranberry, orange, and a dash of brandy for that extra pick-me-up.

Jump to:

• How to Make Cranberry Orange Whiskey Sours
• Notes and Tips
• What’s the Best Whiskey to Use?
• Make It Ahead
• Cranberry Orange Whiskey Sour (Whiskey Punch)
• Ratings

For those of us celebrating, the countdown is on. Multiple meal preps. Last minute gifts. Batteries not included. Back to the store. Scraping up hardened bits of Christmas cookie dough from the counters. Eating all the Christmas cookies. Needing to bake more… Scrape. Bake. Eat. Repeat. Remind me again why this is the most wonderful time of the year?

Oh, right. Love and family and joy and presents… and cookies. If you’re managing to cope sans stress (or whiskey), I salute you. While I try to stay on top of things, and have a wonderfully supportive partner to help me keep up, I also fret a lot. I worry that the kids won’t be happy. I worry there won’t be enough food. I worry I’ll leave someone off my list. And then I over-compensate and over-extend.

So bottoms up to all the worrywarts out there. Your struggle is real. Your exhaustion is palpable. And your desire to make the holiday season joyful for as many people as possible is admirable.

This festive, seasonal Whiskey Punch is for you:  keeping up appearances on the outside; slightly tart, bitter, and acidic on the inside; but rendered perfectly palatable – nay, downright delicious – by sweetness. Kinda like Christmas.

We love subtle Christmas cocktails that are festive, but aren’t overly extra. Try more of our holiday cocktails with a seasonal touch: rosemary vodka gimlet, cranberry Moscow mule, pomegranate Prosecco punch, or red wine holiday sangria.

How to Make Cranberry Orange Whiskey Sours

This shareable, seasonal sipper may be pretty, but it’s also definitely packing a punch (literally). Our Whiskey Punch is essentially a very festive whiskey sour, enhanced with cranberry juice, orange juice, and a dash or brandy for that extra special edge. Serve it pitcher-style or make individual cocktails to get you over the holiday hump!

For a condensed post, click to view the web story for this cocktail recipe.

1. Combine whiskey, brandy, simple syrup, lemon juice, cranberry juice, and oranges juice in a pitcher or a cocktail glass. Stir until well combined. Chill, if desired, for a make-ahead pitcher cocktail.
2. Or, serve over ice right away and garnish with fresh cranberries and orange slices. Enjoy!

Notes and Tips

• Swap the cranberries for cocktail cherries for a completely edible garnish (fresh cranberries are pretty, but entirely too bitter to actually eat).
• There’s no need to use fresh squeezed orange juice – bottled, store bought juice is perfectly fine. We prefer pulp-free for a smooth sip.
• Do use sugar free orange juice and cranberry juice or the finished cocktail as written (with added sweetener) will be entirely too sweet.

What’s the Best Whiskey to Use?

Don’t use the cheap stuff, but there’s no need to go overboard either, especially in a punch recipe with several mixers. We used Bulleit. Jack Daniels, Jim Beam, or any other mid-priced brand will be just fine.

Make It Ahead

We love pitcher recipes for larger gatherings like cocktail parties, Christmas dinner, or New Year’s Eve. This cocktail recipe scales up perfectly for a variety of batch sizes. You’ll find portion sizes in the recipe card to scale this recipe up for a crowd. Simply combine and mix, then chill for at least 4 hours.

Did you make this Cranberry Orange Whiskey Punch? I’d love to know how it turned out! Leave a comment and a rating below.

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