7 Recipes for Large Format Cocktails That’ll Bowl You Over

Quick: what’s the easiest way to serve a thirsty crowd? (Hint: it’s not playing bartender all night long when you’d rather be catching up and relaxing with your guests.) After a little prep and batch work, large format beverages practically serve themselves. Get creative with vessels (anything food safe will do), chill ingredients ahead of time and use large blocks to make sure things stay well-chilled and don’t become overly diluted. Mix up one of these bowlfuls, and you’ll be guaranteed to actually enjoy your own party. What a concept.

Malibu Dream

Recipe courtesy of Joey Maggiore, President/Founder, Hash Kitchen, Scottsdale, Arizona

Serves 2

Inspired by the Barbie movie (and the doll’s favorite beach), this pink concoction serves 2 but can be easily scaled for larger batches. “A large format cocktail is a great way to set a vibe to any get-together,” Maggiore says.” It gives people something to talk about and enjoy together.” Presentation is key, so he likes to use flower vases in different shapes, made from glass which is food safe; this one looks like a purse Barbie might tote for a day out in the sun.

3 ½ oz. coconut rum

3 oz. pineapple juice

5 oz. cranberry juice

2 oz. orange juice

1 ½ oz. grenadine

1 can High Noon Lime Seltzer, chilled

Edible orchid flowers and 4 orang wheels, for garnish

Add all ingredients except garnish to a cocktail glass, add ice and stir for 20 seconds. Strain into the glass purse (or other larger vessel) and garnish with the flowers and orange wheels.

In Pursuit of Passion

Recipe courtesy of Ben Lieppman, Bar Manager, RPM Seafood and Pizzeria Portofino, Chicago, Illinois

Serves 6-8

Lieppman was inspired to create these drinks as a way to bring their popular signature spritzes to the table in a more interactive way; they eventually expanded the option to their entire cocktail menu. “Large format cocktails and punches can be difficult to get right,” he admits. “Turning a shaken cocktail into a punch means you aren’t creating any aeration and lose the ability to make it as cold as possible. He suggests chilling all ingredients before mixing, using large pieces of ice, which melt more slowly, and placing the serving vessel over salted ice, all of which will keep the libation well-chilled.

In Pursuit of Passion photo credit Lindsay Eberly

7 ½ oz. 818 Blanco Tequila

6 oz. fresh lime juice

3 oz. Mezzodi Aperitivo (can substitute another red aperitivo like Cappelletti, Select, Luxardo or Campari)

3 oz pink peppercorn orgeat (see Note, or use regular orgeat)

3 oz. passionfruit syrup (see Note, or usTorani, Monin or another brand)

Sliced lime wheels and crushed pink peppercorns, for garnish

Combine all ingredients in your vessel and mix well, then add ice. Garnish with sliced lime wheels and crumbled pink peppercorn.

For the passionfruit syrup:

Combine ½ cup of passionfruit puree with ½ cup of sugar. Mix with a whisk until the sugar is fully dissolved, and store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

For the pink peppercorn orgeat:

Take 1 cup of peeled and sliced almonds, lightly rinse and pat dry. Lightly toast them in a saute pan on low heat, or in a 350 degree oven, until lightly golden brown. Combine with 1 cup of water and let set, refrigerated, overnight. Strain the liquid into a blender, discarding the almond pieces. Combine with equal parts white sugar and about 10 pink peppercorns, and blend until the sugar is fully dissolved and incorporated. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week.

Summer Time All the Time

Recipe courtesy of Benson Wang, Founder/CEO, Palm House Hospitality, San Francisco, California

Serves 6-8

Wang says this drink’s bold, bright and beautiful flavors are inspired by the transportive feeling to summer, no matter what time of year it is. It’s one of the fun Rubber Duck Punch Bowls on the menu at Palm House. “Since these beverages are intended to be shared, work with flavor profiles and spirits that are popular with a broader group of people versus creating a very nuanced drink,” he suggests. “Have fun with it, be playful and make it whimsical so it’s memorable.”

1 ½ cups white rum

¼ cup pisco

½ cup lemon juice

½ cup pineapple gomme (see Note)

¼ cup cucumber-basil juice

4 cups soda water

Lime and cucumber wheels, basil, edible flowers and a rubber ducky, for garnish

Add 8 cups of ice to punch bowl, add ingredients, stir, garnish and serve.

For the cucumber-basil juice:

Add a ½ peeled and seeded cucumber, 1 bunch basil and 2 cups water to a blender Blend well, strain out solids and store the juice in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

For the pineapple gomme:

Add 1 cup freshly-cut pineapple and 1 cup water to a pot, bring the mixture to a boil, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 30 minutes. Bring the heat back up to medium, add 1 cup cane sugar and ¼ teaspoon agar agar, stir and dissolve. Remove from heat, cool and blend contents. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Bourbon Punch Bowl

Recipe courtesy of Kate Duffy, Bartender, The Twisted Tail, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Serves 5

This drink is an extension of the menu at the South American barbeque restaurant, which is meant to be enjoyed family style. Duffy suggests opening up your china cabinet to find a fun vessel for the punch. “Large format cocktails are a great way to bring guests together, especially when you know your audience has similar tastes,” she says. “It’s also very low maintenance…since everyone can serve themselves.

4 oz. Maker’s Mark Bourbon

4 oz. Irish whiskey

1 oz. marasca syrup (Luxardo or another brand)

1 oz. lime juice

1 oz. honey simple syrup (equal parts honey and simple syrup)

12 oz. ginger beer

12 dashes Angostura Bitters

Fresh fruit of your choice, for garnish

Add all ingredients except garnish to a large bowl, add ice, stir to combine and garnish with fresh fruit.

LilliStar Large Format

Recipe courtesy of Christine Wiseman, Beverage Director, LilliStar, Brookyn, New York

Serves 10-12

Wiseman and team wanted to create a large format cocktail base that goes well with every spirit yet makes each experience unique. “A large format option keeps the party going,” she says. “A vessel that has a dispenser keeps things nice and tidy, and it’s fun to have a garnish station so guests can garnish how they want.” 750 ml bottle of the spirit of your choice (they offer Absolut Vodka, Bombay Dry Gin, Bacardi Rum, Ilegal Mezcal, Altos Tequila or Smooth Ambler Contradiction Bourbon)

1 cup Giffard Banana Liqueur

2 cups Suze

4 cups pineapple juice

2 cups fresh lime juice

2 cups calamansi syrup (Mother’s Best or Monin Exotic Citrus 1 Syrup)

4 cups jasmine green tea syrup (see Note)

Peychaud’s Bitters, for garnish

Rock candy sticks, for garnish

Add all ingredients except garnish to a large bowl or container, add crushed ice, top with Peychaud’s Bitters and garnish with the rock candy sticks.

For the jasmine green tea syrup:

Combine 1 teaspoon jasmine green tea with 2 ½ cups water and 3 cups sugar to a stock pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and let simmer for 15 minutes. Store in the refrigerator for up a week.

Conch Out

Recipe adapted from Kevin Beary, Beverage Director, Three Dots and a Dash, Chicago, Illinois

Serves 5-6

The bar team set out to make a Japanese whisky cocktail in a shareable format. “We wanted to play off the banana notes in the Nika Whisky with the tropical notes from the funky Smit & Cross and a layer of vanilla from the infused Cachaca,” Beary says. “Look outside of your standard cocktail vessels—think cookie jars, punch bowls or even centerpieces.”

6 oz. Nikka Whisky

6 oz. Smith & Cross Jamaican Rum

3 oz. vanilla Cachaca (add a scaped vanilla bean and the pod to a bottle of Cachaca, and infused for 48 hours)

4 ½ oz. Giffard Banana Liqueur

6 oz. lime juice

6 oz. orgeat (they use orgeat infused with Five Spice Powder)

10 dashes Angostura Bitters

3 orchids and 5 pine leaves, for garnish

Everyday I’m Truffling

Recipe courtesy of Gabe Sanchez, Cocktail Expert, Midnight Rambler at The Joule, Dallas, Texas

Serves 4

Sanchez came up with this drink “to demonstrate how easy it is to create something exciting and out of the ordinary for a big group without driving yourself crazy making multiple cocktails instead of focusing on entertaining.” This drink balances the funky, distinctive flavor of truffles with strawberries and Japanese plums called umeboshi. “Whatever you make, consider the entire group,” he suggests. “Just because you and your best friend like early death metal doesn’t mean you should always play it at 11 on the beach.”

Everyday I’m Truffling — Everyday I'm Truffling

1 cup truffle oil-washed Bourbon (see Note)

¾ cup fresh lemon juice

¾ cup strawberry ume plum syrup

4 oz. sparkling wine or ginger beer (for each cocktail)

Lemon wheels and edible flowers, for garnish

Add Bourbon, lemon juice and syrup to a container and stir well, then refrigerate. Add ice to a punch bowl, pour in the punch and garnish with lemon wheels and edible flowers. To serve, divide the mixture into 4 glasses or cups, then top with 4 oz. sparkling wine or ginger beer.

For the truffle oil-washed Bourbon:

Add 2 ½ tablespoons of truffle oil to a heavy-bottomed saucepan and slowly heat to medium-low. Pour a 750 ml bottle of bourbon into a heatproof container and set it next to the stove. When the oil gets hot (2-4 minutes), remove it from the heat, pour it into the bourbon and stir to incorporate. Seal container and freeze for 24 hours. Remove truffle oil from the top of the container (it will look like a plastic plate resting on top.) Place coffee filter inside funnel and slowly pour the bourbon through it to remove the rest of the solids. Pour back into glass bottle and refrigerate when not in use.

For the strawberry ume syrup:

Combine 1 pint of organic strawberries or 1 pound of frozen strawberries with ½ bottle Beksul Korean All Purpose Plum Extract Syrup (found in Asian supermarkets or on Amazon) and ⅜ cup water in a blender. Blend 4-5 minutes on medium, then fully strain into a container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

7 Recipes for Large Format Libations That’ll Bowl You Over This Labor Day Weekend