Vampire Cocktail is the perfect spooky Halloween drink. Syringes filled with sweetened raspberry puree look gory, but taste amazing!
Vampire Cocktail - how fun! I have to admit, I really enjoy making this cocktail. First of all, I love every ingredient in this drink. The base of the cocktail is an easy to make combination of vodka and amaretto shaken with ice combined with orange juice and club soda. That alone is delicious, but when you inject the gory blood, errrr I mean sweetened raspberry puree, the drink not only tastes delicious but you realize this Vampire Cocktail is the must-serve drink for any Halloween party. To make something look gory and disgusting, yet taste awesome, just tickles me pink.
I originally published this post in the first few months of having a blog back when I started in 2014. It quickly became one of my popular recipes this time of year, so I decided to recreate it with a video (scroll down to see it) and give the post a much needed refresh. I also have a lot of other great Halloween recipes I wanted to share with you to go along with the vampire cocktail! Equally gory is the Zombie Shooter. If you're looking for a kid friendly drink, be sure to check out my Witches' Brew. If fun Halloween party food is what you're looking for, look no further than my Trick-or-treat Overload Bars, Monster Cookies, Ghost Meringues, or the ever popular and oh-so delicious Peanut Butter Spider Cookies.
Who knew some raspberry puree cooked with sugar would turn out looking just like blood? This stuff tasted so good, especially in the vampire cocktail. If you're wondering where I found the syringes, I had to look no further than one of those big Halloween superstores that pop up everywhere this time of year. They came in a six pack and I plan on making this vampire cocktail every Halloween from now until forever.
Here's a funny to brighten your day:
Why is a vampire a good person to take out for meals? Because he eats necks to nothing. Get it? Ha!
How to make a Vampire Cocktail:
- Allow me to go through the process of making this drink. First you shake the vodka and amaretto with some ice to get it nice and cold. Then you stir in the OJ and club soda and pour it over ice. This would be a pretty boring drink at this point if it weren't for the spooky bat with the glowing red eyes in the background, don't you agree?
- Suck (get it? vampire - suck) up an ounce of the chilled raspberry puree into each syringe and stick it in the glass. Restrain yourself from squeezing the puree into each glass because its so darn fun. Don't deprive your guests of this pleasure.
- Give it a good squeeze. Ewwwww.
- Give it a stir. I've watched enough Walking Dead, Dexter, and True Blood to freely admit that I was pretty darn pleased with myself in making this drink look like it has blood in it. Well done, Krissy. I can mark that one off my bucket list.
- Lastly, empty those syringes into the other drinks. You have to admit, its pretty fascinating.
Fall drink recommendations:
Looking for other fall drinks that would be perfect for Halloween? In addition to this vampire cocktail, you can make:
- Autumn Punch - a refreshing drink for the grown ups full of apple cranberry juice, fresh plums, pear, and a mouth watering Gewurztraminer, or other fruity white wine
- Autumn Infused Water - stay hydrated while infusing water with your favorite fall fruits
- Caramel Apple Pie Shot - super easy mixture of vodka and apple cider topped with whipped cream and caramel sauce. I'll take two, please!
- Pumpkin Pie Martini - perfectly festive for Halloween, Thanksgiving, or any time you see a leaf change colors and fall from a tree
- Maple Bourbon Apple Cider - this one is a super quick cocktail of apple cider, bourbon whiskey, sweetened with pure maple syrup with a squeeze of lemon
- Hot Apple Toddy - nothing quite says fall like hot apple cider infused with fall spices with a warm-your-belly shot of whiskey
My husband always likes me to credit him on his ideas. Ladies and gentlemen, it was his idea for me to shoot the vampire cocktail from above and he was 100% right. Not only was it a cool angle because you can see more of our sweet bat, but the sweetened raspberry puree really looks like blood in the photo below. So, if you feel nauseated right now, you can thank him.
I'm not lying when I tell you this drink tastes really good. I guarantee it will be the hit of any Halloween party.
Recipe video below:
VAMPIRE COCKTAIL
CLICK TO PLAY RECIPE VIDEO
Ingredients
Raspberry sauce:
- 2 cups raspberries
- ¼ cup sugar
Cocktail:
- 4 ounces vodka
- 2 ounces amaretto
- 2 ounces orange juice
- 6 ounces club soda
Instructions
To make the raspberry sauce:
- Puree the raspberries in a blender or food processor. Press the puree through a fine mesh strainer to separate the pulp from the seeds. Discard the seeds.
- Combine the puree with the sugar in a small saucepan over medium high heat. Stir frequently and cook until mixture darkens and thickens, about 10 minutes. Chill until ready to use.
To make the cocktail:
- Add vodka and amaretto to a shaker with ice and shake until very cold, about 20 seconds. Stir in orange juice and club soda. Pour into iced glasses.
- Fill syringes with equal parts of the raspberry syrup and place in glasses before serving.
Jennie
How many days in advance can I fill the syringes? I don’t know if that purée would separate.
Krissy
It shouldn't separate because it's cooked down with sugar, so I think you should be okay filling them ahead of time.
Amy
Looks great! Does the raspberry mix in to the drink okay after? Or does it sit at the bottom when you drink it? Also, would pineapple juice taste okay rather than orange do you think?
Krissy
It does mix in, yes! And I think pineapple juice would be good, but keep in mind it's sweeter than OJ.
Lucy
It’s perfect to start Halloween month celebration!
Melissa
Has anyone made a big batch of this? How did you portion it out to put in a large pitcher for self serve?
Krissy
Hi Melissa, This recipe makes 4 servings, but you can hover over the number 4 at the top of the recipe card where it says "hover to scale" and increase the number of servings. That way, you can make a big pitcher and set up more syringes for people to add to their drinks. Hope that helps!
Reina Haro
Haven't made this yet, but what would you suggest as for a food to pair with this. 5 stars for creativity
Krissy
This is just a sweet and tasty cocktail. Since it's fun at parties, I recommend typical party appetizers!
Alina Roberts
Is the amaretto on this recipe, a liquer or a syrup? These look delicious and fun.
Krissy
liqueur!