Say cheers with these cocktail recipes for New Year’s Eve

Marking the holiday, festive season or special occasion is always extra fun with cocktails or drinks.

Celebrate with these cocktail recipes that have vodka, rum and there is non-alcholic option too.

Apple Mojito

Ingredients
90 ml club soda
15 ml lime juice
10 mint leaves muddled with 1/4 tsp. sugar
75 ml light rum
75 ml apple juice reduction

How to
Make juice reduction by simmering 1.5 cups of apple juice in a small saucepan until it has reduced to 1/2 cup. Set aside to cool.

Muddle mint with sugar in the bottom of a double highball glass.

Add juice reduction, rum and lime juice. Stir. Add ice.

Add club soda and stir gently. Garnish with apple peel or slice, fresh mint, and a lime wedge.

Mocktail Rooibos Sangria recipe

Ingredients
6 Freshpak watermelon and mint tea bags
1 litre boiling water
3 tablespoons orange blossom honey
1-litre red grape juice
500ml (2 cups) fresh orange juice
125ml (1/2 cup) freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 orange, skin on and thinly sliced
2 bunches mint leaves
2 firm but ripe nectarines, sliced into wedges
watermelon wedges
2 granadillas, pulped
1 cup frozen mixed berries

How to
Steep the watermelon tea bags in the boiling water for about 30 minutes. Remove the tea bags and discard. Add the honey and stir.

Add the grape juice, orange juice, freshly squeezed lemon juice and both lemon and orange slices. Chill until icy cold.

Add the mint and the fresh fruit and stir to combine.

Fill tumblers with ice and the frosted berries and top with Sangria.

Blueberry Infused Vodka recipe

Ingredients
500g blueberries (frozen or fresh)
2 Pieces of lemon peel (peel the lemon with a peeler so there is no pith attached – that’s the white stuff)
4 Stems of fresh thyme (optional)
1 Liter plain vodka

How to
In a clean, airtight jar, smash the blueberries. (You need to smash them so that the vodka can penetrate the skins and get all the flavour out.)

Add the lemon peel and thyme.

Pour the vodka over the top of the ingredients.

Seal the jar and shake it up to distribute the lemon peel and the thyme.

Set the jar in a cool place.

Gently turn the jar end over end and side to side once a day for 3 days.

On the third day, it’s time to strain and bottle your blueberry vodka.

Pour the contents of the jar into a large strainer that has been placed over a bowl or pitcher.

Gently push on the solids to get most of the liquid out.

Throw away the solids.

Line a funnel with a double layer of cheesecloth.

Pour the blueberry vodka slowly through the cheesecloth into the bottle (you can use the original vodka bottle for this).

Cap up the bottle and let it sit overnight.

This article first appeared on All4Women and has been republished with permission.