Christmas Punch is an easy, refreshing recipe perfect for a holiday crowd! With champagne, rum, cranberry and cider, it’s not too sweet and delightfully fizzy.
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5 Star Review
“This Christmas punch is the bomb! So festive with the fresh orange slices and fresh cranberries floating and super easy to make! This will be an annual addition to my holiday repertoire.”
— Maria Anastasiou —
Bubbly, festive, and a total snap to stir together, this easy Christmas punch is light, refreshing, and not at all overly sweet.
It takes less than fives minutes prep time and would be a lovely, useful centerpiece at any holiday party because:
- It’s simple but beautiful, with the right amount of holiday sparkle.
- Guests will love it (and love you for making it!).
- Crowd control. Think of holiday punch as your party’s water cooler. Guests will flock wherever it’s placed.
I usually shy away from big batch punch recipes because they tend to be overly sweet.
Not this Christmas punch!
If you’re planning a holiday gathering and want to know what to drink, Christmas punch is the answer .
Together, this combination of the light and bright with the deep and spicy makes this Christmas punch dangerous (almost as dangerous as festive Rum Punch).
It’s soooo yummy and easy to sip.
Because it takes minutes to make, you can quickly (perhaps too quickly) continue refilling the bowl as the night goes on.
Tip!
No punch bowl?
- Mix this recipe up in a big pitcher, or divide it between two smaller pitchers.
- Try placing it in a large drink dispenser (don’t forget a cup or towel to catch any drips).
The Best Christmas Punch Recipe
Cranberry juice, sparkling wine, and orange slices keep the punch’s flavor light, bright, and dangerously easy to drink.
Be warned: this is one crushable holiday cocktail! (You can choose whether or not to mention this tidbit to guests.)
The Ingredients
- Cranberry Juice. Make sure you use a juice that is labeled 100% cranberry juice, versus cranberry juice cocktail. The juice should be marked 100% cranberry but still has a blend of other juices for some natural sweetness (confusing I know!). This is the one I used. Do not use unsweetened juice or your punch will be too tart.
- Sparkling Wine. Use a very dry sparkling wine. It doesn’t matter what the wine’s country of origin is, as long as it is labeled “brut,” which is the driest, dryer even than wine labeled “extra dry” (Tip: think “brutally dry”). Champagne, cava, and Prosecco are all fair game.
- Apple Cider + Ginger Ale. Adds balance and dynamic flavor.
- Dark Rum or Brandy. Rich, spicy, and fun. I preferred this as a Christmas rum punch, but if you’d like something a little sweeter, brandy is a good option.
- Oranges. For a hint of citrus and beautiful color.
- Cranberries. Fresh cranberries are important here. I love the look of fresh cranberries floating on top too. Cranberries and oranges are the perfect holiday garnishes.
- And, lots of ice!
Tip!
For a festive ice ring, scatter cranberries and orange slices (or a mix of sliced oranges, lemons, and limes) in the bottom of a bundt pan and cover with water (use filtered or boiled water for the clearest ice). Transfer to freezer and freeze for at least 8 hours overnight. Unmold the ice ring (you can run the pan under hot water to loosen it if needed) and transfer it to a punch bowl.
The Directions
- Chill all the ingredients to make sure your punch is nice and chilly.
- Fill a large punch bowl (or pitcher) with ice, and top with all the ingredients except the oranges and cranberries. Give it a quick stir. Last, top with the oranges and cranberries to beautify it. ENJOY!
5 Star Review
“It was incredible. We made it for our Christmas party and every single person loved it. I thought that it would be a little overpowering given the amount of alcohol, but it was not. Great combination and not too sweet.”
— Courtney —
Recipe Adaptations
- Non-Alcoholic Christmas Punch. Omit the alcohol from this recipe, and use sparkling white grape juice or lemon-lime soda instead of wine. Prepare as directed.
- Christmas Punch in Sherbet. Top each glass of this Raspberry Champagne Float with Christmas punch instead of champagne.
- Christmas Punch with Raspberry Vodka. Swap in an equal amount of raspberry vodka such as Tito’s for the rum or brandy in this recipe.
- Pomegranate Christmas Punch. Use pomegranate juice instead of cranberry juice, and swap in pomegranate seeds for the cranberries.
- Cranberry Orange Christmas Punch. Substitute 3/4 cup of the cranberry juice for orange juice.
- Tropical Christmas Punch. Add 1/2 cup pineapple juice, plus additional to taste.
More Christmas Drinks
Christmas drinks are delicious, festive, and perfect for serving at parties.
This punch is one of my favorites. It could also be used for Christmas morning punch.
I also love serving these other easy Christmas drinks:
- Mulled Wine
- Champagne Punch
- Apple Cider Mimosa
- Cranberry St. Germain Cocktail
- Hot Buttered Bourbon
- Crockpot Hot Chocolate
What to Serve with Christmas Punch
This traditional Christmas punch goes perfectly with every holiday recipe. Here are a few ideas:
- Appetizers. Pesto Pinwheels, Cheese Fondue, or Crab Artichoke Toasts are much loved holiday apps.
- Desserts. Perfect Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies, Chocolate Ginger Cookies, and Brown Butter Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies would all be delicious alongside a glass of Christmas punch.
If you are looking for drinks for your next party—or for a good excuse to throw a party, period—I hope you’ll give this easy Christmas punch recipe a try.
It combines a retro holiday feel with a fresh modern taste, and I know your guests will love it as much as we do!
Christmas Punch
Video
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Ingredients
- 1 large bag of ice
- 5 cups 100% cranberry juice* 40 ounces, NOT cranberry juice cocktail
- 2 bottles very dry sparkling wine (750 ml bottles) , such as champagne, cava, or Prosecco (I used a brut Prosecco)
- 2 cups apple cider
- 1 ½ cups diet ginger ale (12 ounces) (from 1 can or poured from a liter bottle)
- 1 ½ cups dark rum or brandy (12 ounces)
- 2 oranges thinly sliced into rounds
- 1 cup fresh cranberries
Instructions
- Make sure all of the ingredients are well chilled.
- Fill a large punch bowl with ice.
- Top with the cranberry juice, sparkling wine, apple cider, ginger ale, and rum.
- Stir gently to combine.
- Top with the orange slices and fresh cranberries. Enjoy!
Notes
- *IMPORTANT NOTE ON CRANBERRY JUICE: Look for a juice that is marked 100% cranberry but that has a blend of other juices, usually apple, added (it is confusing! This is the one I used). If you purchase 100% pure cranberry juice without any other fruits used, it may be too tart for your taste. If this happens, you can sweetened the punch to your liking by stirring in 1/4 to 1/2 cup simple syrup.
- Nutritional information assumes no ice melt. Since realistically, some ice will melt into the glasses, the numbers are a bit high for 6 ounces. Feel free to use myfitnesspal.com or another service if you need a more precise estimate.
Does the ice water it down as it melts? Can you leave the ice out and just add ice to the cup?
Hi Kim! We haven’t experienced that with this punch. It gives it just the right flavor but you could definitely try it that way. Enjoy!
I make this every year for our open house holiday party and every year it’s a huge hit! Thanks for being part of our annual tradition! I love the ice ring and throw in some pomegranate seeds if I have time or I’m feeling fancy. Otherwise, no notes!
Makes me so happy to hear, Stephanie! Thank you!
HELP! I am making this tonight, what kind of apple cider do you use? There are so many!
Hi Katie! Any non alcoholic apple cider you purchase in the refrigerated section is just fine!
This punch recipe is a KEEPER! I served it at my Christmas party last night and everyone asked me for the recipe. I was very nervous about how it would come out, because on paper the ingredients in the recipe didn’t seem like they would weld nicely together and taste good…but it was delicious! I used Prosecco and Brandy…YUM!
Looks great! Thanks for sharing, Patty!
I want to make this. What happens if I only have one bottle of Prosecco? Will it alter the taste? Or just the alcohol content?
Hi Lynn! You’ll have less punch, unless you are planning to add another bottle of something these? and it will alter the flavors some as well.
Captain Morgans Rum I bought says “spiced”. Now I realize there are different flavors of Captain Morgan. I also gave a gold rum. Am I overthinking this?
Hi Karen! Others have tried it with spiced rum and gold, which great success, so either should work. Hope you enjoy it!
This is the second year where I’ve served this punch for our family Christmas party, and it’s always a hit! It is so good that you’ll have 3 to 4 cups and forget that it’s made with alcohol! To keep it lighter, I add raspberry vodka instead of the brandy or rum. Looking forward to making this again!
So glad to hear, David! Thank you!
This was not drinkable. Wayyyyyyy too tart
I’m sorry to hear the recipe wasn’t to your taste, KGZ. I know it’s disappointing to try a new recipe and not enjoy it, but I understand we all have different tastes. I (and many other readers) have enjoyed it, so I really wish they would’ve been a hit for you too!