Christmas in most of Australia lands in the heat, so the drinks that work are cold, bright and quick to make between the ham and the pudding. This guide gives you ten drinks for Christmas Day and Boxing Day, plus three classics for the cherry jar, each made to the International Bartenders Association (IBA) recipe or the producer's own serve, in millilitres. Each of the ten is linked to the bottle that makes it, and four drinks here finish with a cherry from a jar of real cocktail cherries.
A standard drink in Australia is 10 g of pure alcohol, and every bottle's label shows how many standard drinks it holds. The recipes below are single serves at standard measures. Pour with a jigger rather than by eye, have plenty of water and food on the table, and keep a couple of the lighter and alcohol-free options going through the afternoon.
Quick picks
- Luxardo Original Maraschino Cherries 400g: candied marasca cherries in marasca cherry syrup, for the host who makes a Painkiller, a Manhattan or an Old Fashioned.
- Distilleria Negroni Bitter: one bottle for a Negroni, a Sbagliato and a lighter Americano, for the bitter-drink lover.
- Don Fulano Fuerte: an overproof tequila for the Margarita and the Paloma, for the tequila drinker who likes the agave to come through.
What Australians are drinking this summer
Forbes Australia's July 2026 report on cocktail trends, built on interviews with bar managers in Sydney and Melbourne, describes drinkers moving to "fresher, lower ABV serves", ideally ones that "can be recreated at home". It singles out the Martini, the Daiquiri, the Paloma and the spicy Margarita, and it reports that Paolo Maffietti of Sydney's Maybe Sammy is seeing more orders for "tall drinks loaded with plenty of ice, finished with an element of fresh citrus".
Globally, Drinks Trade's summary of the Bacardí Cocktail Trends Report tips the Margarita as the top cocktail of 2026, followed by the Mojito, Piña Colada, Rum and Coke, Whisky and Coke and the Spritz. The same article quotes Marriott's Asia Pacific report: in Australia, 48 per cent of guests are now requesting more NoLo (no and low alcohol) drinks than before. The list below follows that brief: citrus, ice, a couple of long drinks, and real lighter options.
The Negroni, the Sbagliato and the Americano
Forbes reports the Negroni has lost some ground in bars, but it is still the drink many hosts want to get right at home, and its two relatives are better suited to a hot afternoon.
Negroni (IBA). 30 ml gin, 30 ml bitter, 30 ml sweet red vermouth. Pour straight into a chilled old fashioned glass filled with ice, stir gently and garnish with half an orange slice. The IBA names Campari as the bitter. We make ours with Distilleria Negroni Bitter, Bluecoat American Gin and Three Foxes Sunny Arvo Ruby Vermouth, which Three Foxes describes as an Australian sweet vermouth with sun-dried rosella, spiced cranberry, clove, wattle seed and burnt orange peel. The vermouth suits anyone who wants a native Australian accent in the glass. More choices are in our vermouth range, and for the gin drinker there is our gin gift guide.
Negroni Sbagliato. The IBA does not list the Sbagliato, so this is Campari's own recipe: 30 ml Campari, 30 ml sweet red vermouth, topped with prosecco, built in a rocks glass filled with ice and garnished with a slice of fresh orange. Campari says the drink was invented in 1972 by Mirko Stocchetto in Milan, when he poured prosecco instead of gin. As with our Negroni, we make ours with Distilleria Negroni Bitter in place of Campari. Campari's recipe names Prosecco DOC; Lamberti Prosecco DOC Extra Dry does the job, and the rest of our prosecco is here.
Americano (IBA). 30 ml Campari, 30 ml sweet red vermouth and a splash of soda water, mixed in an old fashioned glass filled with ice, garnished with half an orange slice and a lemon zest. Our version swaps in Distilleria Negroni Bitter for the Campari. With no gin in it, it is lighter than the Negroni and the one for someone who likes the Negroni's flavour but wants a gentler glass in the heat. If the bitter drinker wants to go further, our guide to bitters and bitter liqueurs explains the family.
The Margarita and the Paloma
Both IBA recipes call for 100 per cent agave tequila. Our pick is Don Fulano Fuerte, which Don Fulano calls "The Original Overproof" and describes as "unbeatable in a fantastic cocktail". The producer says Don Fulano is made from three ingredients only: hand-selected mature agave, proprietary yeast and natural spring volcanic water. Because it is overproof, each drink made with it holds more alcohol than one made with a standard-strength tequila, so measure it exactly.
Margarita (IBA). 50 ml 100 per cent agave tequila, 20 ml triple sec and 15 ml fresh lime juice. Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass, with a half salt rim if you like. For the orange, Gabriel Boudier Triple Sec from the Dijon house is the bottle, and it suits a host who wants one orange liqueur on hand for Margaritas.
Forbes reports the spicy Margarita has taken off in Melbourne. The IBA has no official spicy version, so start from the classic above and follow a trusted recipe for the chilli.
Paloma (IBA). 50 ml 100 per cent agave tequila, 5 ml fresh lime juice, a pinch of salt and 100 ml pink grapefruit soda. Pour the tequila into a highball glass, squeeze in the lime, add ice and salt, top with the soda and stir gently. Garnish with a slice of lime. It is exactly the kind of tall drink with ice and citrus Forbes describes, and the pick for a long afternoon outdoors. For tequila as a present, see our tequila gift guide.
The Daiquiri and the Mary Pickford
Daiquiri (IBA). 60 ml white rum, 20 ml fresh lime juice and 2 bar spoons of superfine sugar. Stir in the shaker until the sugar dissolves, then add ice, shake and strain into a chilled cocktail glass. The IBA specifies white Cuban rum; we make ours with Doorly's 3 Year Old White Rum, for the drinker who wants a clean, simple rum sour.
Mary Pickford (IBA). 45 ml white rum, 45 ml fresh pineapple juice, 7.5 ml Luxardo Maraschino and 5 ml grenadine syrup, shaken with ice and strained into a chilled cocktail glass. It is a summery drink and a good first use for a bottle of Luxardo Maraschino. Our cocktail syrups cover the grenadine. For rum as a present, see rum for Christmas.
A Painkiller for Boxing Day
The Painkiller has no IBA recipe, so this is Pusser's own. Per glass: 60 ml Pusser's Rum, 120 ml pineapple juice, 30 ml orange juice and 30 ml cream of coconut. Pour into a big glass or goblet filled with ice, grate fresh nutmeg over the top and garnish with an orange slice and a cherry. Pusser's gives the drink's ratio as four parts pineapple to one each of cream of coconut and orange juice, with the rum added to suit. If you mix the juices ahead in a jug, keep the rum out and add a measured 60 ml to each glass as you serve.
Use Pusser's Blue Label, which Pusser's bottles at 40 per cent outside the United States and describes as full, round and perfect for cocktails. It suits the host who wants one rum for a long, tropical drink. Our navy rum guide tells the Pusser's story, and a Luxardo cherry is the garnish.
The Espresso Martini after lunch
Espresso Martini (IBA). 50 ml vodka, 30 ml coffee liqueur, 10 ml sugar syrup and one strong espresso (the IBA gives no millilitre figure for the coffee). Shake well with ice, strain into a chilled cocktail glass and float three coffee beans on top.
The IBA names Kahlúa. We use Vedrenne Liqueur de Café from Nuits-Saint-Georges, which Vedrenne describes as dense and dark in colour, with well-toasted coffee bean, cocoa, caramel and nougatine on the nose. For the vodka, Hartshorn Sheep Whey Vodka comes from a micro-distillery at Birchs Bay, about 40 minutes south of Hobart, that makes spirits from sheep whey. Hartshorn says it keeps just 10 per cent of each distillate and bottles the vodka double distilled and unfiltered. It suits the coffee lover, and it is a talking point on the table. More are in our coffee liqueur range.
Kir and Kir Royale
Kir (IBA). 10 ml crème de cassis in the glass, topped up with 90 ml dry white wine. For a Kir Royale, the IBA says to use Champagne in place of the white wine. It is the easiest drink here and a good pre-lunch glass for the wine drinker who does not usually want a cocktail.
Gabriel Boudier Crème de Cassis is a blackcurrant liqueur from the same Dijon house as the triple sec above. It suits the host who wants one small bottle that turns any dry white or sparkling wine into a drink.
The cherry on top: Luxardo Maraschino and marasca cherries
The garnish is the small detail people notice first. Luxardo Original Maraschino Cherries are, in Luxardo's words, candied cherries soaked in Luxardo marasca cherry syrup, with the jar or tin about half fruit and half syrup. Luxardo notes the syrup can be used in cocktails as a flavoured sugar. The 400 g jar suits anyone who makes the odd Manhattan; the 1000 g tin suits the host garnishing drinks for a full table through the holidays.
Where to use them, by the IBA:
- Manhattan. 50 ml rye whiskey, 20 ml sweet red vermouth and a dash of Angostura bitters, stirred with ice, strained into a chilled cocktail glass and garnished with a cocktail cherry.
- Old Fashioned. A sugar cube soaked with Angostura bitters and a few dashes of plain water, muddled until dissolved, then ice and 45 ml bourbon or rye, stirred gently. Garnish with orange slice or zest and a cocktail cherry. Our bourbon gift guide has the whiskey.
- Aviation. 45 ml gin, 15 ml Luxardo Maraschino, 15 ml fresh lemon juice and a bar spoon of crème de violette, shaken with cracked ice and strained into a chilled cocktail glass, with an optional maraschino cherry.
Luxardo Maraschino itself is 32 per cent. Luxardo infuses marasca cherries, with leaves and branches from the same trees, in larch-wood vats for up to three years, distils the whole lot in copper pot stills, matures the heart of the distillate in ash-wood vats, then adds a simple syrup. It is for the cocktail maker working through the classics, and it appears in the IBA's Aviation, Last Word and Mary Pickford. The full Luxardo range is in our Luxardo collection, and our guide to types of liqueur covers the rest of the shelf.
Lighter and alcohol-free
The Americano and the Kir above are the lighter pours in this list. For the Hugo Spritz fan, Suro elderflower liqueur is the bottle, and our Hugo Spritz guide gives the recipe along with an alcohol-free Hugo made with elderflower syrup, a good glass to have on the table all afternoon. Our syrups are the place to start for alcohol-free drinks generally.
Buying for someone who loves making drinks? Our gift guide by personality matches bottles to the person.
Where to start
- One jar for every drink with a cherry: Luxardo Original Maraschino Cherries 400g, or the 1000 g tin for a big table.
- Negroni, Sbagliato and Americano: Distilleria Negroni Bitter with Three Foxes Ruby Vermouth.
- Margarita and Paloma: Don Fulano Fuerte and Gabriel Boudier Triple Sec.
- Daiquiri and Mary Pickford: Doorly's 3 Year Old and Luxardo Maraschino.
- Boxing Day Painkiller: Pusser's Blue Label.
- Espresso Martini: Hartshorn Sheep Whey Vodka and Vedrenne Liqueur de Café.
- Kir Royale: Gabriel Boudier Crème de Cassis.
- Hugo Spritz: Suro.
The rest of the bar is in our liqueurs and cocktail cherries ranges, and we deliver to every Australian state and the ACT.