How to Make the Best Aotearoa Christmas Gin Cocktail

If summer had a flavour, our Aotearoa Christmas Gin would probably be it: bright, fruity, a little cheeky, and absolutely ready for a good time. What started six years ago as a “hey-let’s-make-a-Christmassy-gin” experiment has gone on to become one of our most iconic seasonal releases. Aotearoa Christmas Gin is now a bit of a tradition… the kind that actually improves every year, unlike your uncle’s jokes.

Bursting with real raspberries, strawberries, and classic juniper, it’s basically summer pudding in a glass, just with better stories afterwards. Whether you like your cocktails zingy, berry-forward, or dangerously easy to drink, this gin plays nicely with pretty much everyone.

So let’s whip up the perfect Christmas Gin cocktail: simple, refreshing, and guaranteed to charm anyone you’re trying to impress… including yourself.

What You’ll Need for a Christmas Gin

Great cocktails start with great ingredients, and by “great,” we mean fresh berries, good ice, and obviously a bottle of Aotearoa Christmas Gin.

Here’s the line-up:

• Aotearoa Christmas Gin — the star of the show: real berries, proper botanicals, packed with flavour.

• Fresh raspberries or strawberries — they lift the colour, the aroma, and the smug feeling you get when your drink looks stunning.

• Citrus — lemon or lime for that sharp summer snap that keeps everything lively.

• Sugar syrup — just enough sweetness to keep things balanced.

• Soda or tonic — depending on how spritzy you like your evening.

Gin’s a bit of a shapeshifter, shake it, stir it, lengthen it, or keep it tight and tart. But with this particular concoction, the berries are the hero. Like, award-winning-school-production-hero.

How to Make a Christmas Gin

Making this cocktail is dead simple; no need to be Tom Cruise in Cocktail (please don’t throw bottles).

1. Muddle your berries if you're using fresh ones.

2. Add gin, citrus, and syrup.

3. Shake with ice if you’ve got a shaker.

4. If you don’t have a shaker, no stress. A clean jar with a lid works a treat.

5. Martini glass? Lovely. No martini glass? Use whatever you’ve got, a jam jar, enamel mug, the good crystal your mum refuses to use.

The goal is flavour, not formality.

Christmas Gin Twists Worth Trying

Once you’ve nailed the classic, it’s fun to go rogue:

• Make it a Collins - add more soda and serve tall for a lighter, longer sip.

• Go extra sour - bump up the citrus for a sharper, punchier cocktail that bites back.

• Add basil or mint - for the herb-garden purists who like things fresh and fragrant.

• Top with bubbles - Prosecco, cava, whatever’s on special. Immediate festivity.

Feel free to play around - our Christmas Gin is forgiving. Even if you’re not.

Christmas Gin Cocktail Recipe

Ingredients

• 60ml Aotearoa Christmas Gin

• 30ml fresh lemon juice

• 20ml simple syrup

• A small handful of raspberries or sliced strawberries

• Ice

• Soda water or tonic to top up (optional)

• Garnish: fresh berries, citrus wheel, or mint

Instructions

1. Add berries to your shaker (or jar) and gently muddle.

2. Pour in gin, lemon juice, and simple syrup.

3. Fill with ice and shake until chilled.

4. Strain into a chilled glass - martini, highball, whatever you’ve got.

5. Top with soda/tonic if you want it longer and lighter.

6. Garnish with berries or citrus and enjoy your new summer ritual.

Serving Suggestions

• Serve icy cold - the gin’s flavours absolutely sing at lower temps.

• Freeze berries and use them as “ice cubes” that don’t water your drink down.

• Add a rosemary sprig if you want a hint of Christmas tree without, you know… chewing a pine.

• Pair it with summer platters: cheese, berries, flaky pastries, the works.