14 Easy-to-Batch Cocktails

Dinner party, garden party, or birthday party: When the guest list starts to mount, it can seem intimidating to make cocktails for a crowd. But if you want a signature drink at your next event — and having a designated bartender working the cocktail shaker all night isn’t in the cards or the budget — don’t give up. You can batch make wonderful cocktails for any season and occasion.

When batching, consider “sticking with drinks that are simple, refreshing, and easy to scale,” says Rocco Milano, Certified Spirits Specialist and EVP of Sales at Still G.I.N By Dre and Snoop. “Whether it’s a punch, an eggnog, or a big-batch spritz,” he says, “you’re essentially making something to pour out in portions — so it’s all about how you build the flavors.”

Julianna McIntosh of Join Jules says, “The best batch cocktails use spirits with bold flavors that hold up over time — think tequila, rum, and gin.” These are ideal for batching because they “mix well, stay balanced, and pair perfectly with fresh juices or syrups.” But Milano assures us any liquor can work if you’ve got the right methods, so whiskey and vodka fans fear not — we’ve got you covered, too. When you want to actually enjoy your party instead of getting stuck behind the bar all night, batching is a good move. So, read up on general best practices for how to batch cocktails for a party, and read on for specific cocktails our experts recommend batching for your next bash.

By far the most popular answer from our experts, margaritas have the advantage of being served on the rocks and not containing any carbonated ingredients or bitters. That makes them one of the easiest cocktails to batch. It’s not uncommon to order a whole pitcher of margaritas. Refreshing, sweet but not too sweet, boozy but not too boozy, margaritas are crowd pleasers. Especially at daytime festivities. 

April Wachtel, Founder & CEO at Cheeky Cocktails, explains that shaken citrus cocktails like margaritas, daiquiris, or even cosmopolitans can work well batched if you pre-mix the spirits, citrus, and sweetener and then shake or pour over ice right at serving. “This preserves that fresh, zippy brightness and the thin layer of ice on the surface of the cocktail,” Wachtel says. 

You can consult the perfect margarita recipe, or add other fruity and spicy flavors. The classic margarita is tequila-based with lime juice and triple sec. But if you feel like playing with the recipe, Luke Barr, Global Master Mixologist at NEFT Vodka, recommends his strawberry basil “NEFT-ARITA” variation. He builds the cocktail with homemade strawberry basil reduction, uses vodka instead of tequila, and garnishes with sliced jalapeño. Barr says the reduction works for margaritas or more flavorful Manhattans. Having one base that works in multiple cocktails is a great way to add some variety to your menu with very little extra work. 

Julianna McIntosh, hosting expert and Cutwater mixologist, says, “If you love a margarita but want an extra citrusy twist, batch up some palomas.” Palomas are simple cocktails to batch with tequila, grapefruit, lime juice, and a touch of simple syrup.

Palomas tend to be more tart than sweet, due to the use of grapefruit rather than orange. You can also make them with mezcal for a smokier, sophisticated flavor. “Effortless, refreshing, and perfect for warm-weather entertaining,” McIntosh says palomas are a great option for the grapefruit fans looking to put a twist on a favorite.

Another even easier iteration of a batched tequila cocktail is Ranch Water. McIntosh says it’s “the ultimate easy-sipping cocktail.” Simply mix tequila, fresh lime juice, and any sparkling mineral water. This will be a super refreshing, and not sweet at all option. McIntosh says you can batch the tequila and lime ahead of time, and then let guests top it off with sparkling water when serving. An excellent option for a self-serve bar, where guests can adjust how boozy they want their drinks.

Made with wine as its base, and often spiked with liquor or liqueur, sangria is an excellent option for a garden party or a tapas night. You can make sangria with red, white, or rosé, and adjust the sweetness to your liking. There are some best wines to use for sangria, but honestly, you can make almost any wine work in a pinch. It’s a great way to disguise a cheaper bottle, or a box for that matter.

A typical sangria incorporates sliced fresh fruit, and you can let some macerate in the wine for a few hours before serving to really infuse the flavor. Red sangria will usually have some orange, maybe apple, and strawberries. White sangria loves a peach pairing. Muddle the fruit with sugar or pour in some orange liqueur to make it sweeter. You can serve it in pitchers or ladle it from a larger container. 

If you want an upgrade for the pool party, a wine slushy may take a few more steps to prepare, but you can get that blender going and have half a dozen drinks ready to serve at once. You can make a frozen sangria with any wine. For a frosty frosé, make a strawberry simple syrup. Freezing the wine itself, rather than blending with ice cubes, makes for a stronger, less watered-down result. Wine won’t freeze all the way, due to the alcohol content, but it will get to a nice slushy texture. Simply combine that slushy wine and syrup in a blender and voila! This easy batch cocktail feels very luxurious served up poolside.

With just two ingredients, you can make these as easily using pre-made lemonade or frozen lemonade concentrate, or you can elevate them with homemade lemonade. The advantage of making your own is that you can adjust the sweetness, keeping things nice and tart if you prefer, and you can add other flavors. 

Vodka is probably the least divisive mixer and has the advantage of being a neutral base for a cocktail. You can add all sorts of fruity flavors without clashing with the liquor’s flavor profile. Bring back Luke Barr’s strawberry basil reduction and give strawberry basil lemonade a try. Provide your guests with one carafe of icy cold lemonade, another of iced tea, and a bottle of vodka, and they can play with the ratios and even mix up a vodka Arnold Palmer.

If you love these flavors but want to up the booziness, batch some Lemon Drops. A mixture of vodka, triple sec, lemon juice, and simple syrup, they can also be upgraded with additional fruity flavors. Barr likes a blueberry tarragon lemon reduction mixed with vodka, once again championing complex berry herb flavor combos that will definitely elevate your garden party. His reductions are no mere simple syrups, as he adds a good measure of apple cider vinegar to the mixture for an added tang. 

Old Fashioned is another classy classic cocktail typically made with bourbon, or try using mezcal for a smoky ingredient swap. They may look intimidating, but it’s not hard to learn how to make an Old Fashioned. And it may surprise you to learn that it’s not even that hard to batch them.

April Wachtel says, “Boozy stirred cocktails like the Old Fashioned, Negroni, or martini are perfect” for batching. You can mix all the ingredients ahead of time, including a little added water (this should make up 15-20% of the total cocktail, according to Wachtel). Keep them in the freezer before party time. These almost entirely liquor-based drinks won’t freeze. Wachtel explains that spirit-only batches without juice or muddled ingredients can last much longer than other batched cocktails. “Just keep them cold and sealed,” she says.

Boozy, bitter, with a touch of orange, Negronis are another classic cocktail that delivers complex flavor. Equal parts gin, red vermouth, and Campari, all you have to do is scale up to make a larger batch. Use any gin, but perhaps a bolder gin will yield the perfect Negroni. Pop a bottle of pre-batched Negronis into the freezer and come aperitif time, they’ll be frosty cold and ready to serve to your guests with an orange slice. 

Tyler Pawlak, experienced bartender and co-founder at Blended Bean Coffee, likes to upgrade with cold brew ice cubes. As they begin to melt, they add a wonderful depth of coffee flavor that complements the other ingredients. 

James Manos, Lead Mixologist at Nomikai at The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, says he personally tries to avoid batching Negronis and Manhattans. “Those drinks are revered cocktail royalty,” he explains. “Guests like to see them prepared directly.” This is where the Boulevardier comes in. Almost identical to the Negroni but made with bourbon instead of gin, it takes on a bit of a sweeter, mellower flavor. The Boulevardier recipe structure is just as simple, with only three ingredients, and it contains no juice, so it can hang in the freezer with the other boozy bevvies. “I build in a portion of the dilution,” he adds, “then simply pour over a large cube and garnish.” 

Espresso martinis are a big favorite these days, and if you want to make enough for a crowd, there are ways to make that possible. They won’t be quite the same as the individually shaken ones with that wonderful crema layer on top, but they can still be really good when you approach them from the perspective of batching.

“Crafting a recipe that utilizes cold brew, and eliminates dairy,” says James Manos, “allows this cocktail to be easily batched without a drop-off in flavor.” Swapping cold brew into your espresso martini is certainly the best bet when batching. It takes too long to pull enough espresso for a large batch, and you run the risk of making something burnt or bitter.

Tyler Pawlak prefers to use a moka pot to achieve his bigger batch. Moka pots are great for brewing strong, espresso-like coffee in larger quantities, and Pawlak uses his to batch 4-6 espresso martinis. Maybe not ideal for the giant gala, but perfect for a dinner party. His personal twist includes dark chocolate liqueur and half-and-half. Combine all ingredients in a 32-ounce mason jar and stir before refrigeration. Then, he says, before service, he’ll transfer one or two servings to a smaller jar to shake vigorously before pouring into a coupe.

Are you feeling sophisticated? Nothing says, “Welcome to my classy dinner party” like a martini, but shaking one up for every guest can take too long. That doesn’t mean martinis are off the menu, though. This video from Stanley Tucci’s Instagram caught our eye when he promised half a dozen martinis at once, prepped hours in advance. The secret is adding 100 milliliters of still water to the gin and vermouth, which helps keep things smooth and icy cold. Tucci’s working with Tanqueray, and we love a gin martini, but we can’t see why it wouldn’t work just as well with vodka. You can offer your guests a lemon twist or an olive garnish to keep things extra classy.

Marie Sanudo, Chief Cocktail Officer at Liquor Lab, says she loves to make a similar Freezer Door Martini, and recommends adding 90 milliliters of olive brine into the mix. If you like dirty martinis, that sounds pretty good to us! She also adds lemon bitters and a pinch of sea salt, so she’s mixing a twist into her dirty martini. After shaking, “Place it in the freezer for about six hours, then serve in a frozen coupe or martini glass with your choice of olive,” Sanudo says. 

Let’s keep the celebrity endorsements going with Ina Garten’s favorite batch cocktail to get the party started. Her Pomegranate Gimlet is another classy gin-based cocktail you can batch up for your next soiree. The pomegranate component is Ina’s personal twist, but gimlets in their simplest form are made of gin, lime juice, and simple syrup.

Rocco Milano agrees that gimlets are a great option for batching. “It follows the classic 2:1:1 ratio and is super light and easy to sip,” says Milano. And even better, the gimlet base can serve as a starting point for other cocktails. “Add some ginger beer and you’ve got a batchable gin mule,” says Milano. “Or swap in flavored sugar-free sodas for a fun twist and some bubbly texture.” You can use any gin to make a gimlet, but keep in mind that gins often have a strong flavor and can have different botanical, floral, and sometimes vegetal flavor profiles that work better or worse with certain mixers.

Speaking of mules, Julianna McIntosh calls the Moscow mule “a timeless crowd-pleaser.” Moscow mules combine vodka with fresh lime juice and ginger beer for “a refreshing, slightly spicy cocktail.” Served over ice, with a lime wedge, McIntosh says they’re easy to batch. 

“The key thing to remember is that bubbles don’t last,” says Rocco Milano. The carbonation in any soda or sparkling wine dissipates quickly, so you can’t batch these too far ahead of time unless you’re using a pressurized system. Safe to say most of us don’t have one of those at home, so the key to preparing these drinks is to batch the base ingredients and add the sparkling element just before serving. “You definitely don’t want to batch them on Monday and expect them to hold up for a Friday party,” quips Milano. 

Use these same principles to make a Tokyo mule with sake, a Kentucky mule with bourbon, or a Mexican mule with tequila. You can even try a Dark and Stormy with dark rum. But you may want to think twice before swapping ginger ale for ginger beer in your mule cocktail. 

A French 75 is a champagne-based cocktail with a splash of lemon juice, a splash of gin, and a touch of added sweetness. It’s a great option when you want things to feel a little sophisticated. Once again, the key to batching cocktails with sparkling ingredients is to add those bubbles right before serving. You could mix the gin, lemon juice, and a little simple syrup first, but once you add champagne, this isn’t the kind of batched cocktail that can hang out in the fridge for hours.

 “If you have to let a carbonated drink sit out for any amount of time,” Tyler Pawlak says, “consider a taller, more slender pitcher or dispenser.” It takes a little longer for the carbonation to escape that way. If you know it’ll be going fast, though, you can serve it in a punch bowl. Rocco Milano uses the same base as his gimlet, swapping the lime for lemon juice, and tops it off with champagne at service.

Rocco Milano says that while a cocktail is crafted for the individual, punch really is designed for sharing. “It’s more communal, festive, and low-maintenance once it’s set up,” he says. Milano’s personal favorites are tiki-style punches, and he likes his gin-based with lemon juice, passion fruit syrup, orgeat, and falernum. “The flavors are vibrant and layered, and it scales beautifully for a group,” he explains. But that’s just where it starts. According to Milano, “The real fun is in the presentation.” 

Punches can be complex, or they can be some of the easiest drinks to batch. Either way, you can turn them into a centerpiece with a beautiful crystal punch bowl, or throw in a decorative bunt pan ice cube to keep things cool and cute. Milano even suggests garnishing with citrus wheels and edible flowers to lean into a tropical look.

Luke Barr once again suggests investing a little time in making a reduction or syrup using fresh fruit, sugar, water, and white champagne vinegar or apple cider vinegar as the base for a punch. “A strawberry-basil or blackberry-tarragon shrub works particularly well,” says Barr. “Simply add your preferred spirits and some bubbles for a fantastic punch.” 

This divisive Yule-time classic is another beverage that’s batched by definition and often served in a large punch bowl at a holiday party. It’s essentially a creamy Christmas punch, but it’s worthy of its own mention. A traditional eggnog combines egg yolks with milk and/or cream, sugar, and some vanilla and spices like nutmeg and cinnamon for a rich and creamy beverage. Consult the definitive eggnog recipe. You can serve it alcohol free, but the alcoholic version typically employs rum to give it its cocktail status. 

And if you want to show off extra skills, Luke Barr says he loves a milk punch. The term can refer to something milky, like an eggnog, but also to a more complicated prepped cocktail that goes through a milk clarification process. The result, according to Barr, is “a smooth, velvety drink that is slightly sweet with a hint of citrus.”

Keeping things festive, let’s talk mulled wine. Vin chaud (hot wine), as the French call it, or glögg as it’s called in the Nordic countries all winter long, is a delicious warm cocktail combining red wine, warming spices like cinnamon, and fresh citrus. Make sure not to let it boil or you’ll burn off the alcohol. 

While we’re mulling things over, why not take that holiday spice blend in an even fruitier direction? Wassail, as it’s known to Christmas carolers, is a warming drink made by gently simmering proper apple cider (not the sparkling stuff) with those similar spices and citrus. You can pour a bottle of whiskey or brandy in there at the end, or save it for spiking each drink separately so that your cider doubles as an alcohol free option for the kids and anyone else who’s off the sauce.