NYE party plans? Cork mixologists share their favourite cocktail recipes

Well, it’s time to say Sayonara Baby to 2025 and welcome in 2026 with open arms. Yep, that’s right - time to reset the calendar and go again, and for that we’re going to need a stiff drink!

Cork’s Market Lane, Goldie, Elbow Lane, Orso, and Castle Café - the five restaurants that make up the Market Lane Group - are on the top of their game when it comes to shaking up a seasonal cocktail. Better still for ringing in the new year with.

Well-versed in how to pair food and drink to create unforgettable moments of deliciousness, each restaurant has their own mixologists in-house working closely with their head chefs to craft the perfect sip with the perfect nibble.

I asked these talented mixologists what favourite cocktail they’ll be saluting in the New Year with and then asked their head chef what the best canapé or snack is to eat it with.

The catch? The snack had to be quick to prepare (because who wants to be doing even more cooking at this stage) and picked up from a great little deli shop or the English Market. Let’s see what they came up with…

Warm & Fuzzy by Ciaran Cummings - The Castle Restaurant, Blackrock

Ciaran says that with just a little bit of prep, you can enjoy one of The Castle’s signature festive cocktails at your New Year’s party to really wow your guests.

“Irish whiskey, Cointreau, lemon juice and warming cinnamon and fennel combine to make an easy-going slow sipper that you can enjoy alongside mixed snacks and canapés. This is a great New Year’s drink as it has those lovely Christmas spice notes from the whiskey and syrup, complemented by a refreshing citrus flavour to keep it nice and light.”

For the syrup:

• Roast 100g of cinnamon sticks and 50g of fennel seeds for 8 minutes at 180°C.
• Meanwhile, add 500g of brown to 500ml of boiling water. Stir until completely dissolved.
• Add roasted cinnamon and fennel to your brown sugar syrup, let it cool, then refrigerate for 24 hours.
• Sieve out the cinnamon and fennel and pour the syrup into a sterilised bottle. The syrup will last a couple of months in the fridge and can be used to make other drinks. It’s particularly great in a hot toddy in place of honey.

For the cocktail:

• 40ml Beara Distillery ‘Black Cask’ Irish Whiskey, but most Irish whiskeys will do just fine
• 25ml Cointreau
• 25ml roasted cinnamon and fennel syrup
• 15ml lemon juice

To make:

• Add everything to a cocktail shaker with plenty of ice, shake well, then strain into a whiskey glass. If you don’t have a shaker, add all to a whiskey glass with plenty of ice and stir well.

To serve:

The Castle’s head chef Kai Davies suggests serving with something equally redolent of the festive spirit. “In the restaurant we serve ours with a sweet hazelnut brittle, but it can be enjoyed with mixed salted and roasted nuts, dried fruits, smoked salmon, sharp cheeses and charcuterie.”

Boulevard of Broken Creams by Joe Timbrell - Elbow Lane Smokehouse

The cocktail game is rocking at Elbow Lane. There have been some very cool collabs this year between the in-house nanobrewery and fantastic Cork distillers, Rebel City Distillery. Joe Timbrell’s “Joe’s Amaretto” has been recognised with a prestigious award and has put the Amaretto Sour firmly on the must-drink list when dining in the restaurant. No surprise then that Joe’s New Year drink of choice is a delectable concoction of all these things – and more!

“This is a lovely new cocktail we have just put on the menu at Elbow Lane. It’s a take on a classic Boulevardier but leans into creamy, chocolate notes. We use our own Angel Stout, Joe’s Amaretto and Matt’s Cacao (a spiced chocolate liqueur), so we are using the very best of what we have created at Elbow to take on the New Year. Complex, robust, malty, it is also very warming and soothing.”

For the cocktail:

• 30ml Bourbon
• 15ml cacao
• 15ml Sweet vermouth,
• 5ml Amaretto
• A dash of chocolate bitters
• Elbow Lane Brewery Angel Stout

To make:

• Put everything into a shaker, add plenty of ice, shake well and pour. Top off with the stout.

To serve:

Head Chef, Harrison Sharpe, keeps his suggestion to the sweet end of the nibble scale – and it sounds divine: “This cocktail is perfect with a mince pie or Chocolate Kimberley”, says Harrison. I couldn’t agree more – after all, who doesn’t love a Kimberley at Christmas!

The Basil Waltz by Kyle Atwood - Market Lane

The eponymous Market Lane restaurant is one of the city’s largest and busiest restaurants. As you might expect, their mixologists are tearing it up when it comes to slinging a cocktail or two. Kyle says keeping the mix simple while delivering a really interesting and layered liquid experience is key for quick service.

“I’m choosing this cocktail because it’s quick, easy to make and very refreshing. The white rum doesn’t last on your palate too long, the sweetness of the basil syrup cuts out any harsh sourness, and the dry martini balances everything off. It’s light, elegant and refreshing - perfect for New Year’s Celebrations! The savoury note of the basil also makes pairing with nibbles very easy.”

For the cocktail:

• 50ml white rum
• 35ml basil syrup
• 20ml dry martini
• 20ml lemon juice

To make:

• Add all your ingredients to a cocktail shaker with lots of ice, shake briskly and pour. Serve with a fresh basil leaf as a garnish.

Head chef, Rob Martin, takes inspiration for his pairing from the cocktail’s savoury basil note, which makes pairing a minimal effort activity, so you can get back to enjoying this special evening with family and friends.

“I love serving up sourdough bruschetta topped with the wonderful produce available at the English Market, which we also use in the restaurant. Spiced beef from McCarthy’s of Kanturk for some seasonal spice; topped with chopped local Churchfield Community Garden tomatoes; a lick of Ardsallagh goat cheese with a touch of black pepper and a basil leaf; or Hegarty’s mature cheddar cheese paired with slices of gorgeous Gubbeen salami. Perfection!”

Winter Wonderland by Dee Munelly - ORSO

The Mediterranean flavours that ORSO is known and loved for allows for their seasonal cocktails to chart a different territory with just a hint of warmer, sunnier days to come amid the festive glow of an Irish winter!

“This is a deliciously festive, crisp, spritzy cocktail made using one of our favourite ingredients at ORSO, the wonderful Valentia Island Vermouth – Ireland’s only vermouth! This is a great way to toast friends and family, wishing each other all good things for the new year ahead,” says Dee.

For the cocktail

• 50ml Valentia Island Vermouth
• 15ml Aperol
• 10ml fresh lemon juice
• Prosecco
• Rosemary sprig

To make:

• Add the Valentia Island Vermouth, Aperol and fresh lemon juice to your cocktail shaker, fill with ice and shake. Pour into a chilled glass and top up with prosecco. Garnish with a sprig of rosemary.

To serve:

ORSO head chef, Hannes von der Fecht, says a good hummus and something to dip into it is the perfect pairing with this cocktail.

“We would serve this with some nibbles such as freshly baked flatbread with some hummus. Our favourites are our Sweet Pea Hummus with Dukkah and Chickpea, but there are some great Cork producers making delicious hummus, (such as Toons Bridge or Claire’s Hummus), available to buy from any good deli, supermarket, or the English Market.

The Merry Berry, Dee Munelly - ORSO

With the rise of the #SoberCurious and #Lo&No movements, non-alcoholic cocktails are having a renaissance. Great quality 0% craft spirits mean lacklustre super sweet “mocktails” no longer cut the mustard. Dee and the ORSO team are embracing the trend with 0% cocktails that taste just as good as the real thing!

“This is a lovely seasonal non-alcoholic cocktail that is full of flavour and festive cheer. We make all our syrups, purees and coulis in-house with fruits and herbs from great local growers such as Churchfield Community Gardens.

For the cocktail:

• 50ml 00 Tequila
• 15ml blackberry puree
• 10ml spiced sugar syrup (you could use the cinnamon and fennel syrup above)
• 10ml fresh lime juice

To make

• Garnish a tumbler with dried raspberry powder, add all the ingredients to the glass, top-up with ice and stir. Serve with a wheel of lime.

Rosso Sbagliato by Aishling Moore – Goldie

Goldie is the pioneering restaurant that takes a whole catch approach and works from gill to fin to ensure as much of the fish and shellfish landed in by day boats is used. For head chef Aishling Moore and her team, this means getting seriously creative every single day with a menu that changes not just daily, but sometimes mid-service too! The dishes that are served forth from this creative cauldron are sassy, elegant, fun – just like this classic drink from Rome!

“Sbagliato means ‘mistake’ or ‘wrong’ in Italian, but there’s nothing wrong about this cocktail”, says Aishling. “We make this often at Goldie. Our previous restaurant manager, Eva, showed up this Roman recipe. It’s so great for kicking off an evening with because there’s no hassle of shaking a drink – just pour, stir, serve and enjoy!”

For the cocktail

• 25ml Martini Rosso
• 25ml Cocchi rosso (Valentia Island Vermouth is a good substitute)
• Sparkling Pinot Rosé wine

To make

• Pour over ice in an elegant crystal tumbler glass, top up with some sparkling Pinot rosé wine, and give a gentle stir to mingle all the flavours together. Garnish with a slice of orange.

To serve

This elegant drink deserves an elegant bite. If in the restaurant, Aishling’s Red Mullet “Anchovy” Gildas are a must, the recipe for which is included in her book Whole Catch. A quicker version is skewering excellent quality salted anchovies, pimento-stuffed green olives, and a pickled cornichon on a cocktail stick. Perfection!

Top Tips for Speedy Cocktails

If you’re planning on shaking up a good few cocktails over the new year festivities, make it simple by prepping ahead:

1.A simple syrup is essential in cocktails. You can make a large batch to have to hand by just heating 1 part water to 1 part sugar until the sugar dissolves, allow to cool, pour into a sterilised bottle and place in the fridge. To make a flavoured syrup, use the same ratio but add flavourings: spices, basil, etc.

2.Big Juicy! A lot of cocktails call for fresh lemon or lime juice. Juice these in advance, store them in a sterilised bottle, and label them up so you don’t get confused which is which!

3.Mise En Place: Have all your garnishes ready to go. Citrus slices, fresh herbs, salts for glass rims, preserved cherries, freeze-dried cranberries – whatever you need to finish off your cocktail.