Everyone who knows me knows that for Halloween, I go hard. It's always been my absolute favorite holiday to decorate for and celebrate, so now that I have my own space, the obsession has only gotten worse. Last year, I threw a Halloween housewarming party to celebrate the move-in, and it was such a blast, I figured I'd do it again.
This year? A witch-themed party. I've been working on the prep since mid-August, and I'm finally at a point where I feel my friends and family are mildly unnerved when entering my apartment. This is ideal.
When I first decided on the theme, I knew I'd need a signature drink. A quick Google search introduced me to the most wickedly-appropriate liqueur that was ever created: Viniq. This sparkly purple stuff hardly looks edible — actually, it looks like unicorn vomit — but after reading the reviews, I found that it was in fact digestible. I found a simple cocktail recipe that called for Viniq mixed with champagne, and then drove all over Long Island searching for the stuff.
Finally, after countless phone calls and multiple store visits, I found a place on the north shore that stocked it. I bought two bottles, popped open some champagne, and mixed up some trial drinks with my best friend. Long story short, it was nasty. It tasted kind of like carbonated vodka and regret.
After that, it was back to the drawing board. I tried mixing the Viniq with all kinds of things (including apple cider, ginger ale, and Sprite), but nothing tasted particularly great — and anything that wasn't clear messed with the purple and diluted the sparkles.
Then it dawned on me: I had to work with the color, not against it. Blue and red make purple (and yellow's pale enough that it doesn't matter), so I got some grenadine and blue Curacao and mixed it into a base of lemonade. It worked. It downplayed the vodka in the Viniq while simultaneously amping up the deep purple color.
This drink tastes like a combination of lemonade and cotton candy, and the alcohol is basically undetectable. When you mix it, it does this mesmerizing swirly thing that's perfect for Halloween.
Add in some dry ice, and you get a smoking glass of witch's brew that'll hopefully impress people, hopefully not burn off their tongues, and likely lead to one of the worst hangovers of your life. (Hydrate, guys. This stuff is sugary. Also, if you choose to use dry ice, do your research and be careful with it.) Additionally, if you're having trouble finding Viniq wherever you are (or you don't like the taste of it), it's surprisingly easy to make your own.
A quick heads up that I'm not a bartender, so when it comes to the correct measurements for alcohol, I'm at a loss. Both times I made this one, I eye-balled it and it came out delicious, but I made an attempt at quantities for the sake of this recipe.
Witch's Brew Shimmery Halloween Cocktail
1.5 oz Viniq Purple Shimmery Liqueur
.75 oz Blue Curacao
.75 oz Grenadine
4 oz lemonade
Dry Ice (Optional)
