Holiday Spiced Rum Punch

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(Note: this post was originally published on December 17, 2020. The date above reflects migration to the new platform.)

A Festive Holiday Cocktail

As we near the holidays, I'm all about over-the-top food and cocktails. This is the time of year to break out all your most epic recipes, crazy garnishes, indulgent treats, and unnecessary but excellent culinary flair. This rum punch is perfect for the season!

This punch is a celebration of all things December and holiday. It features an over-abundance of seasonal ingredients and flavors, including warming spices, fresh herbs, and all the unique December fruit you can get your hands on. It's festive, colorful, and oh-so-special.

Rum punch (or bourbon punch) is my solution to sangria. To be completely honest, I don't love wine. I try to enjoy it, and sometimes I can get in the mood. But I'd happily take a distilled product over wine any day. However, I do feel like I sometimes miss out with sangria. Enter this boozy rum punch! It has all the best aspects of sangria, minus the annoying wine, plus the most gorgeous spiced rum.

Holiday Spiced Rum Punch with festive seasonal garnishes

Iconic Fall Ingredients

This punch makes use of spiced rum, which has a lovely amber color and complex, warming spice flavors. I complement those with sweet apple cider, tart pomegranate juice, and zippy ginger beer for a nicely-balanced profile. You can use whatever seasonal fruit you like. Top it off with a couple sprigs of thyme and a cinnamon stick and you'll have yourself a cornucopia of holiday ingredients! In this case, more is definitely more.

As you all know, I'm in love with Koloa Rum from Kaua'i! I work with Koloa on a lot of their recipes, so if you're a rum lover like me, definitely check out their Instagram (@KoloaRum) to get more ideas. Rum is truly a versatile spirit that's great year-round, not just in summery tiki drinks.

Holiday Spiced Rum Punch with seasonal herbs in the background

Flavor and Serving Options

One thing I love about this drink is that you can change up the ingredients however you like. It would work great with bourbon instead of rum, with rosemary instead of thyme, and with whatever fruit you love. I've shown persimmon, pomegranate, and clementine since they're such iconic holiday fruits, but apple, pear, cranberries, and any sort of orange would work beautifully too. Mix and match to use what looks fresh and what will complement your menu.

There is one important logistical thing to keep in mind here though: this drink will work best if you plan ahead. Mix together your rum, cider, and pomegranate juice, and let it sit in the fridge overnight with the fruit slices. The fruit will infuse the cocktail with such wonderful, complex, festive flavor. Then, when you're ready to serve, add the ginger beer and garnish it up!

Hosting a crowd? No problem! This punch works great as a batch cocktail. Just take the amounts in the recipe card and multiply as needed.

Holiday Spiced Rum Punch with festive seasonal garnishes

Let's Talk Ingredients

Here's what you'll need for this recipe, as well as some thoughts, tips, and possible substitutions. If you make any substitutions, I'd love to hear about it in the comments section below.

  • Spiced Rum. Of course I'm smitten with Koloa! If you can't get your hands on it, choose another amber-colored spiced rum. I'd stay away from dark spiced rum since it will be too assertive (and will make your drink a weird color!).
  • Apple cider
  • Pomegranate juice
  • Assorted seasonal fruits. The sky is the limit! Think super-seasonal options like persimmon, apple, pomegranate, cranberries, oranges, etc.
  • Ginger beer. I love Fever Tree's "Refreshingly Light" ginger beer since it's super gingery and not too sweet.
  • Cinnamon sticks. Optional but they're a fun garnish.
  • Fresh seasonal herbs. You can use thyme, rosemary, or whatever you have on-hand already to garnish your punch.

Holiday Spiced Rum Punch with a rum bottle

Closing Thoughts

One of the things I love about punch-style cocktails like this is that they're easy to scale up as needed. The amounts below are for a single drink; multiply as you wish! You can easily make a big pitcher to serve a crowd, or a small pitcher for a holiday date night. Bonus points if you have an old-school, over-the-top crystal punch bowl. (Clearly I don't, but I've shown this drink in an antique Waterford bowl that was passed down from my grandmother; ssssshhh don't tell!).

Isn't this drink just plain fun? It has such holiday spirit and is so beautiful. It could even make for a great table centerpiece. Happy holidays, I hope they're merry and bright! This punch will certainly help achieve that.

Holiday Spiced Rum Punch with festive seasonal garnishes

Share It!

It makes me so happy to hear from you and see your creations! Please leave a comment below and let me know what you think about this recipe. If you post a photo on Instagram, hashtag #TheRogueBrusselSprout and tag me (@TheRogueBrusselSprout) in the post text so that I'm sure to see it.

Suggested Pairings

Snack Board Guide

Maple Sea Salt Hummus

Raw Cranberry Pomegranate Sauce

Harvest Wild Rice Salad

No-Bake Ginger Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Pie

Disclosure: Koloa Rum is a long-term partner and I receive free product. However, all opinions and thoughts are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that keep The Rogue Brussel Sprout running.

Holiday Spiced Rum Punch

This festive holiday punch is bursting with seasonal fruit and cozy flavors. Iconic fall ingredients like apple cider, pomegranate, ginger beer, and warming spices make this punch the perfect addition to any holiday meal.

Author:
Lee

Ingredients

  • 2 oz amber-colored spiced rum
  • 3 oz apple cider
  • 0.5 oz pomegranate juice
  • Assorted seasonal fruits
  • 2-3 oz ginger beer
  • Cinnamon stick
  • Sprig or two of fresh seasonal herbs

Instructions

  1. The amounts shown here are per drink. Decide how many drinks you want to make and multiply accordingly. You can easily make a big batch for a crowd!
  2. In a pitcher, combine the rum, apple cider, pomegranate juice, and slices of seasonal fruit. Let it sit in the fridge for at least a few hours, or ideally overnight.
  3. When you're ready to serve, pour into individual glasses.
  4. Top each glass off with ginger beer.
  5. Garnish with additional seasonal fruit, a cinnamon stick, and a sprig or two of fresh herbs.

Leave a Comment

Please Share Your Thoughts!

Did you make this recipe? Did you make substitutions? How did you serve it? Any helpful tips? Please share your thoughts, since these insights are really useful to both me and to other readers.

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Julie
December 11, 2022
Cheers to this lovely and festive seasonal cocktail, very refreshing and delicious sip!
Anonymous
December 7, 2022
I’m going to make this for a holiday party next week. I love all the seasonal fruits.
Pamela
December 25, 2021
We made this at holiday gatherings. The warm spices are perfect for a cold night, and a garnish of mint made it so festive. It’s on our repeat list for the rest of the holiday season!