Witches Brew Drink (A Halloween Cocktail)

This Witches Brew Drink is perhaps the most spectacular Halloween cocktail you could concoct! Not only is it show-stopping and striking with its gorgeous colors, color-gradient and brilliant shimmery swirls, but it also tastes incredibly delicious with great depth of flavor!

Treat all the witches to a night of splendor with this easy to make, perfect Halloween cocktail!

Why I love this witches brew cocktail

• I mean, just look at it. Isn’t this the most gorgeous Halloween cocktail you could ever make or drink?
• And it’s so easy to make and comes together very quickly.
• And it tastes like the best Halloween cocktail you’ve ever had. Tart, citrusy, herbaceous, and sweet, this drink tastes as good as it looks.
• I also show you how to make a non-alcoholic version of this drink that is just as spectacular, so you can make a kid-friendly witches brew Halloween drink as well!

Halloween is actually my favorite time of the year. Having grown up in New Zealand, Halloween wasn’t a thing for me as a kid. I did enjoy watching classic Halloween movies like Ghostbusters (my favorite), Hocus Pocus, Addams Family, Trick r Treat, Labrynth, Nightmare on Elm Street etc. But trick or treating, wearing costumes (guising), decorating houses with spooky craft, were not things that I did growing up.

Now that I live in Canada, I go all out for Halloween. After all, the birthplace for trick or treating in North America was right here in Ontario, Canada, so it seems very apt.

And apart from dressing up our house for Halloween, I thoroughly enjoy making Halloween themed drinks and food too. Like this witch’s heart cocktail (a very popular Halloween recipe on the internet!), hocus pocus cocktail, unicorn blood cocktail, Halloween cupcakes, Halloween cookies, spooky chorizo pies etc.

And this witches brew drink is my husband’s favorite of them all!

What does this cocktail taste like?

What makes this witches brew visually spectacular and magical is the color gradient of blue, pink, and purple, and the gorgeous shimmery swirls! This cocktail has notes of botanicals and herb flavors from the gin and simple syrup, balanced with the tartness of lemon, and citrus flavor from lemon and blue curacao, and the sweetness of simple syrup and blue curacao.

Add to that the refreshing effervescence of club soda (or ginger ale or ginger beer for an added spicy kick), this witches brew drink is the whole package. A gorgeous Halloween cocktail that tastes just as fantastic as it looks.

This Halloween cocktail does require one specialty liquor – which is empress gin. But the good news is that I have already shared how to create your own color changing gin on the blog a few years ago! So you don’t have to buy empress gin to make this witches brew cocktail!

Witches brew ingredients

Empress gin

This specialty gin is absolutely delicious and has a beautiful dark purple color, which is perfect to make purple cocktails. This color is the result of butterfly pea flowers added during the process of making this gin. I’ve talked about this phenomenon in my color changing cocktails series before.

Because to this, empress gin turns a light pink color when mixed with lemon. This color changing gin uses the same method as my color changing galaxy lemonade and my color changing liquors and liqueurs.

Lemon juice

Freshly squeezed lemon juice adds a sour tartness with the strong citrus flavors that we all love. Lemon juice also acts as an acid to create the color change in the empress gin.

Herbed simple syrup

I infused a simple syrup with a few different fresh herbs to add a stronger herbaceous flavor to this cocktail to complement the flavor of the gin. But this is optional. So you can leave it out if you like, or use a simple syrup that you can purchase from the store.

Blue curacao

Curacao is an orange liqueur, but with blue color added. This bright colored blue orange liqueur adds sweetness and notes of orange and citrus flavors. The color is essential for the blue layer in the witches brew cocktail.

Club soda or sparkling water

The addition of sparkling water changes this Halloween cocktail into an easy sipping cocktail.

Luster dust

I use pearl luster dust in this recipe. Pearl luster dust takes on the color of the cocktail. So it’s perfect for a color gradient cocktail like this. This is an optional ingredient that is used to add a shimmery swirl in the drink. The shimmery swirls make this witches brew that much more perfect and magical as a Halloween cocktail!

Ice

Required for serving the witches brew drink. Since this cocktail isn’t made in a cocktail shaker, but directly in the serving glass, you’ll need the ice to chill the cocktail.

Ingredient substitutions

Empress gin substitutes

If you cannot find empress gin where you live, then you can make your own color changing gin! You could also substitute the gin with vodka or tequila (any clear-colored liquor).

Simply purchase a clear colored gin that you like to drink. Place a few of the dried butterfly pea flowers in the gin and let it infuse for about 3 – 4 days until the gin takes on a deep purple color. The more flowers you add, the faster the gin will be infused with the flowers. You can check out the full recipe on how to make your own color changing gin on my blog.

Lemon juice substitutes

Instead of lemon juice, you can use lime juice. You could also use a mix of orange juice and lemon juice, but the tartness will be less pronounced, and the color might have an orange hue due to the orange juice. So I recommend using either lemon juice or lime juice here.

Apple juice is another substitute that COULD be used, but this will also change the color and flavor of the cocktail. Plus, it’ll be sweeter, so the overall sweetness of the drink may need to be adjusted.

Herbed simple syrup

This can be left out entirely, or be replaced by extra blue curacao if you prefer. I find that adding too much of the blue curacao makes the witches brew drink too blue in color (for my liking), which compromises that beautiful color gradient. Leaving it out will make the cocktail less sweet, but I actually prefer this!

Instead, a simple syrup that is unflavored can be used as well. To make a simple syrup, combine 100 g of sugar with 100 g water (1:1 ratio by weight). Heat the mixture until the sugar dissolves and the syrup simmers for about 5 – 10 minutes. Let it cool completely before using it in your cocktails.

Blue curacao

In place of blue curacao, you can use any orange flavored liqueur. Usually orange flavored liqueurs are either clear in color or have a slight yellow hue. A witches brew cocktail made with a clear orange liqueur will not have the blue gradient in the drink. Which is perfectly fine, if you don’t mind that.

However, to get that pretty blue gradient, simply mix a few drops of blue food coloring with the orange liqueur of your choice before adding it to the Halloween cocktail! Some options include,

• triple sec
• cointreau
• grand marnier

Sparkling water

Instead of sparkling water, use tonic water. Tonic water adds a little bitterness that will add to the depth of flavor. If you like gin and tonic, then definitely use tonic water instead of club soda. You can also use your favorite champagne instead of sparkling water too.

To add a little spice and bite to the cocktail, use ginger ale or ginger beer. Lemon soda or sprite can also be used. However, when using a flavored soda, make sure to adjust the sweetness (simple syrup or blue curacao) so that your witches brew cocktail isn’t overly sweet.

Luster dust and ice

You can omit the pearl luster dust if you cannot find it. I do not recommend using a colored luster dust, because this will impact the color gradient in the witches brew cocktail.

While ice is absolutely required for this drink, you also have the option of adding dry ice. A small piece of dry ice in the glass will create a spooky smoky effect as the drink is mixed. Absolutely perfect for Halloween! However, I did not add dry ice to my witches brew in this post.

What is the best cocktail glass to serve the witches brew drink?

The cocktail glass that you use is also very important for this witches brew recipe. This is because the witches brew is made directly IN the cocktail glass.

Choose a serving glass that,

• has about 11 – 12 oz capacity.
• can easily show the blue, pink, and purple color layers (ideally with some vertical depth).
• can easily be stirred to mix the ingredients.

This is why I use a highball glass, instead of a shorter, smaller glass like a martini glass or coupe glass. Other substitutes that can be used are rock glasses (can be used with less ice), or wine glasses, or large champagne flutes.

How to make this Halloween cocktail

Prepare the cocktail glass

Add a generous amount of ice into each glass. Make sure you have a measuring glass or jigger, a stirrer, drink garnishes, and straws ready.

Assemble the cocktail

Add a small amount of pearl luster dust into each glass. About 1/8th of a spoon should me more than enough.

To each glass, add the empress gin or color changing gin. Reserve about 1/2 fl oz for the end, if you like. But this is optional.

Pour in about 2 – 2.5 fl oz of sparkling water, and the simple syrup (if using) into each glass. Stir to combine. The swirls of pearl luster dust should be very clearly visible now.

Next, pour the lemon juice, and watch the gin change color from purple to pink!

Next, pour the blue curacao into the cocktail. The curacao should cascade down the drink and sink to the bottom. In a few seconds, the blue curacao will settle at the bottom of the glass creating a blue to pink color gradient.

Finally, pour the last amount of gin off the back of a spoon placed just below the surface of the liquid in the drink, so that it floats on top. This is optional, but will create a thin purple layer on top.

Garnish and serve

Serve with a straw and a garnish of your choice. I used a rosemary twig here, since I used a rosemary and herb infused syrup for the witches brew. But you can also use a lemon twist or a slice of lemon as well.

To create a smoky effect, add a small nugget of dry ice to the glass and watch the witches brew cocktail smoke, and shimmer and swirl (with the luster dust)!

How to make a non-alcoholic version of this witches brew recipe

To make a non alcoholic witches brew drink, you’ll need to make a few adjustments.

First, make ice with butterfly pea infused tea. I use the same method to make my galaxy color changing lemonade as well.

Then make a batch of simple syrup, but instead of water, use orange juice to make the simple syrup. Add some blue food coloring to the orange flavored simple syrup. This will be the non alcoholic blue curacao.

Then, place the “magic” ice cubes (butterfly pea ice) in the cocktail glasses. For bonus points, crush the ice into pieces. Do not make finely crushed ice though – rather try to maintain the ice in larger pieces.

Next, add the lemon juice, followed by sparkling water. The butterfly pea ice will melt and turn the drink purple or pink.

Finally, add the blue orange simple syrup (“non alcoholic blue curacao”) which should sink to the bottom and create a blue to pink gradient!

Frequently asked questions

What to expect from this Halloween cocktail

Due to the blue curacao in the cocktail, this cocktail will turn a beautiful shade of dark blue with shimmery luster dust when stirred before drinking. It’s important to stir to mix the drink before enjoying it, so that the flavors mix well and are well distributed.

Yes, this drink looks stunning, but the flavors of this witches brew cocktail are just as amazing! The botanical notes of the empress gin are balanced with the citrus notes of the lemon and curacao, and they make for a very refreshing drink. The tart and citrus notes balanced with the sweetness and the lingering herbaceous flavors make this Halloween drink a delightful sippable beverage.