Christmas Old Fashioned: A Holiday Recipe with Spiced Syrup

The Christmas Old Fashioned swaps standard demerara syrup for a holiday-spiced syrup (clove, cinnamon, allspice, star anise) and uses bourbon's vanilla character to wrap the whole thing in a warm, mulled-wine-adjacent profile. It's the cocktail that pairs with every food on the holiday table — turkey, ham, prime rib, root vegetables, pies — without competing with any of them. Build a batch in the morning, set out the spiced syrup with the bourbon and bitters, and let guests pour their own all afternoon. This is the holiday party cocktail that doesn't get tired by hour 4.

Recipe, the spiced syrup formula, batching for a Christmas crowd, and the bourbon picks that sing in this build. For the broader sub-hub, see our Old Fashioned Variations guide.

The Christmas Old Fashioned Recipe

Ingredient	Amount	Notes
Bourbon	2 oz	Maker's Mark, Buffalo Trace, or Knob Creek
Christmas spiced syrup	¼ oz	Recipe below
Angostura bitters	2 dashes	—
Orange bitters (optional)	1 dash	Adds brightness
Wide orange peel	1 strip, expressed	Drop in
Garnish (optional)	Cinnamon stick + star anise	Visual; release aromatic over 5 mins
Ice	1 large rock or sphere	—

Method

1. Drop one large ice rock into a rocks glass.
2. Add ¼ oz Christmas spiced syrup and 2 dashes Angostura (+ optional dash of orange bitters).
3. Pour 2 oz bourbon over.
4. Stir gently 25–30 times.
5. Express a wide orange peel over the surface; drop it in.
6. Garnish with a cinnamon stick and star anise pod across the rim.

Christmas Spiced Syrup Recipe

This is the heart of the cocktail. Make it 1–2 days ahead so the spices steep fully. Recipe makes ~1.5 cups (enough for 24 cocktails):

• 1 cup demerara sugar
• 1 cup water
• 2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half
• 4 whole cloves
• 1 teaspoon whole allspice
• 2 star anise pods
• 1 strip orange peel, ~3 inches
• Optional: 1 small piece fresh ginger (½ inch), peeled and sliced

Method:

1. Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan.
2. Bring to a low simmer over medium heat. Don't boil aggressively — that drives off aromatics.
3. Simmer 10 minutes.
4. Remove from heat; let steep 1–2 hours minimum (overnight is better).
5. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean glass jar. Refrigerated, keeps 3 weeks.

Make this 1–2 days ahead. The longer the spices steep, the deeper the syrup. Adjust to taste on subsequent batches — more cinnamon if you want classic-Christmas-cookie, more clove if you want mulled-wine, more anise if you want a Christmas-licorice profile.

Why Bourbon, Not Rye

Christmas spices (cinnamon, clove, allspice, anise) are themselves warm-spice flavors — pairing them with rye's pepper produces a cocktail that's "spice on spice on spice," which can become muddled. Bourbon's vanilla and caramel give the spices something to wrap around. The cocktail reads as integrated rather than busy.

If you only have rye, this build still works — use a softer rye like Sazerac or Russell's Reserve 6-Year, and reduce the spiced syrup to ⅛ oz so the spices don't compete with the rye pepper.

Best Bourbon Picks

Bourbon	~Price	Profile
Maker's Mark	$30	Wheated; soft vanilla wraps Christmas spices beautifully
Buffalo Trace	$25	Vanilla-caramel; reliable, wide audience
Knob Creek 9-Year	$40	Bigger oak; gives the cocktail more depth
Old Forester 1910	$55	Extra char; smoky-spiced premium pour
Eagle Rare 10	$50	Cocoa-vanilla layers; premium gift cocktail

For the full bourbon ranking, see Best Bourbon for Old Fashioned.

Christmas is one stop on a much longer calendar. The seasonal Old Fashioned guide walks the year month by month, so the December build has somewhere to hand off to in January.

Batching for a Christmas Party

Holiday gatherings run long. Pre-batch the cocktail base; let guests pour. Recipe for 12 cocktails (one Christmas afternoon for 6–8 people):

• 24 oz bourbon (one ~750ml bottle)
• 3 oz Christmas spiced syrup
• 24 dashes Angostura bitters (~½ oz)
• 12 dashes orange bitters (~¼ oz; optional)
• 2 oz filtered water (simulates dilution)

Combine in a large pitcher; stir 30 seconds; refrigerate at least 2 hours. Serve over fresh ice rocks with expressed orange peel + cinnamon stick + star anise garnish per drink. Pre-batched Christmas Old Fashioneds keep 2 weeks refrigerated, so any leftover is a head start on New Year's.

For Christmas dinner specifically, set the batched cocktail out at the start of the evening. Guests refresh their own. The cinnamon-stick garnish doubles as a stir stick.

Variations

Christmas Old Fashioned with Maple

Replace ¼ of the spiced syrup with pure maple syrup. Cinnamon-clove-maple-bourbon is one of the great holiday flavor combinations.

Smoked Christmas Old Fashioned

Build standard, then briefly smoke with cherrywood. Smoke + Christmas spices = the cocktail equivalent of a fireplace log. Use the Viski Smoked Cocktail Kit.

Christmas Old Fashioned with Mulled Wine Notes

Add 1 splash (~⅛ oz) of port wine to the build before stirring. Christmas + port creates a mulled-wine character that's exceptional with savory holiday food.

Cranberry-Christmas Old Fashioned

Muddle 4–5 fresh cranberries with the spiced syrup before building. Adds tart-fruity dimension. See Cranberry Old Fashioned.

Food Pairings for a Christmas Dinner

• Roast turkey or ham: Bourbon's vanilla cuts the salt-fat; spices echo dish flavors.
• Prime rib or beef tenderloin: Stronger bourbon (Knob Creek 9-Year) handles the rich beef.
• Root vegetables (carrots, parsnips, sweet potato): Christmas spices in the cocktail mirror the vegetables' caramelized notes.
• Stuffing/dressing: Sage in stuffing + clove in cocktail = harmonious.
• Pumpkin, pecan, or apple pie: Cocktail can replace coffee for dessert.
• Cheese course: Aged cheddar, blue cheese, or Stilton all pair well.

Glassware & Tools

• Molten Tumblers or any rocks glass — see Best Old Fashioned Glass.
• Glacier Rocks Sphere mold — for the ice rock.
• Big Jig Double Jigger — for measuring.
• Trident Cocktail Spoon — for stirring.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you make a Christmas Old Fashioned?

Combine ¼ oz Christmas spiced syrup (cinnamon, clove, allspice, star anise), 2 dashes Angostura, and 2 oz bourbon in a rocks glass with one large ice rock. Stir 25–30 times. Garnish with expressed orange peel, a cinnamon stick, and a star anise pod.

What is Christmas spiced syrup?

A demerara simple syrup infused with whole spices: 2 cinnamon sticks, 4 whole cloves, 1 tsp whole allspice, 2 star anise pods, and an orange peel. Simmer 10 minutes, steep 1–2 hours minimum, strain. Keeps 3 weeks refrigerated.

Bourbon or rye for a Christmas Old Fashioned?

Bourbon. Bourbon's vanilla-caramel character wraps around Christmas spices (cinnamon, clove, allspice). Rye's pepper layered with the spices can become muddled. Use bourbon as the default.

Can I batch Christmas Old Fashioneds for a party?

Yes. For 12 cocktails: 24 oz bourbon + 3 oz Christmas spiced syrup + 24 dashes Angostura + 2 oz water in a pitcher. Stir, refrigerate 2+ hours. Serve over fresh ice rocks with garnish per drink. Keeps 2 weeks refrigerated.

What food pairs with a Christmas Old Fashioned?

Roast turkey, ham, prime rib, root vegetables, stuffing, pumpkin or pecan pie, aged cheeses. The spiced syrup makes the cocktail compatible with virtually any holiday-table food.

How long does Christmas spiced syrup keep?

Refrigerated in a clean glass jar, the syrup keeps 3 weeks. Make a batch in early December and use through the holidays. The syrup also works in coffee, hot toddies, and as a mulled wine base.

More Recipes: Cinnamon · Cranberry · Maple · Seasonal Hub