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Cocktail History
The Santa Baby is a Christmas cocktail that was created by food writer and author Jessica Strand and was first published in her book Very Merry Cocktails: 50+ Festive Drinks for the Holiday Season. The original recipe called for just two ingredients—sparkling white wine and cranberry liqueur. But by a happy accident, we made our version with sparkling rosé and ended up liking how the drier tart wine mixed with the bitter berry flavor even more.
Cocktail Ingredients
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following ingredients:
Sparkling Rosé: This is a carbonated wine made with red grapes. We used Victorious Pink Grande Cuvée Sparkling Rosé because it’s fruity and flavorful. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Gruvi Non-Alcoholic Bubbly Rosé in place of the sparkling wine.
Cranberry Liqueur: This is a liqueur made with cranberries, sugar, and alcohol. We used Tattersall Distilling Cranberry Liqueur because it’s high quality and has a delicious tart flavor. For a mocktail version of this drink, try Monin Premium Cranberry Syrup in place of the cranberry liqueur.
Cranberries: This is a small red fruit. We used fresh cranberries.
Bartending Tools
To make this cocktail, you’ll need the following bar tools:
Jigger: This is used to measure and pour ingredients. We used the Japanese jigger from the A Bar Above 14-Piece Silver Bar Set.
Cocktail Pick: This is used to hold the garnish. We used one from the RRRuo Gold Horse Cocktail Pick Set.
Tasting Notes
The Santa Baby features effervescent fruity aromas of cranberry and wine and has a dry taste that marries the somewhat sour flavor of cranberry with the bright but muted sparkling wine.
Our Opinion of This Cocktail Recipe: We both really loved the Santa Baby. It’s hard not to enjoy this recipe regardless of your experience level, especially given its dazzling red hue and simple format. This drink ended up being one of our favorites of the Christmas season, so we’ll be making a few of them to share with family and friends.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Which of our palates is yours most like?
Find out if your palate is most similar to Alex’s or Kendall’s by answering five questions.
Alex’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
“Despite it barely being a cocktail given that it’s only made with two ingredients, this drink has a lot to offer thanks to its combination of dry sparkling rosé mixed with an even drier and tart yet slightly sweet cranberry liqueur. It’s a cocktail that really delivers the mood of the season by combining the seasonal fruit’s notes along with the celebratory mood of sparkling wine, and it truly is one that anybody is likely to enjoy.”—
Kendall’s Take: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
“I don’t really know what I was thinking when I added this cocktail to our calendar because I apparently changed the recipe by swapping out dry sparkling wine for a dry sparkling rosé. Neither of us realized it until after we’d bought the stuff, so we went with the altered version. I enjoy sparkling wine on its own, and adding in a few more ingredients to it is usually a guarantee I’ll like the drink. I wasn’t sure how tart cranberry would mix with sparkling rosé though but knew it was bound to be good. Thank goodness, I was right… Wow, is this tart yet slightly bitter berry a welcome addition to the wine’s flavor profile. I loved this simple cocktail and will be making it again and again, I’m sure.”
Recipe
This cocktail recipe was adapted from Very Merry Cocktails: 50+ Festive Drinks for the Holiday Season by Jessica Strand.
Add cranberry liqueur to a cocktail glass.
Top with sparkling rosé.
Garnish with cranberries.
Ingredients
Directions
Add cranberry liqueur to a cocktail glass.
Top with sparkling rosé.
Garnish with cranberries.
Make It a Mocktail: Use Gruvi Non-Alcoholic Bubbly Rosé in place of the sparkling wine and Monin Premium Cranberry Syrup in place of the cranberry liqueur to try a booze-free version of this drink.
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More Christmas Cocktails
If you like this Christmas-inspired cocktail recipe, here are a few others we’ve tried that you may enjoy:
Poinsettia Cooler: A tequila cocktail made with cranberry juice, cranberry shrub, lime juice, and cranberries
The Little Donkey: A vodka cocktail made with gingerbread syrup, lime juice, ginger beer, and a cinnamon stick
Kohler Mint Cocoa: A chocolate mint brandy cocktail made with milk, white peppermint schnapps, dark crème de cacao, cocoa powder, whipped cream, and grated chocolate
Cranberry Cobbler: A sherry cocktail made with cranberry syrup, orange slices, a mint sprig, and cranberries
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