As far back as I can remember, my dad's family has had a tradition of making Whiskey Sour Punch at our annual Christmas gathering -- often an open-house style get together on Christmas Eve, filled with food, family, fun, laughter and songs.

It was my Grandpa's recipe, and it was one of the recipes that he submitted for the Family Recipes booklet that they published and handed out to family in the year that I was born. Coincidence? I think not.  Although my Grandpa is no longer with us, this drink is a tradition that the family carries on each year.

A couple of years ago, I decided to bring this tradition over to Tom's family.  I have also started including it in my Halloween Party repertoire.  It tastes great and seems to appeal to most people.  It's citrusy, punchy, not overly sweet.

This year's Halloween version of Whiskey Sour Punch -- "with Boos" -- and the non-alcoholic orange sherbet punch.

For Christmas this year, we had a special gathering at Tom's aunt's house -- with his Grandparents making the trek from Florida to be with us. I contemplated making something different, but settled on bringing the tried and true Whiskey Sour Punch.  However, I wanted to do something to make it a little more festive and Christmas-y. I also made the Pomegranate Cranberry Crostinis that I made up last year, and so I happened to have some extra cranberries and rosemary on hand.  It was just what I needed to add a little pizzazz to the punch bowl!

Christmastime Whiskey Sour Punch

Here's the original recipe as my Grandpa submitted it.

Between my grandpa's original recipe, notes from my dad on how he makes the punch bowl version, and a few times playing around with it myself -- here's the basic recipe I have come up with for the large-batch version of Christmastime Whiskey Sour Punch. Tweak to your tastes!

Ingredients:

• 6 oz Orange Juice or Pineapple Orange Juice frozen concentrate
• 12 oz can of frozen lemonade concentrate
• 1 liter sparkling water
• 12 oz Seagram's 7 whiskey
• Lots of ice
• 1 lemon
• 1 orange
• 1/2 cup fresh cranberries
• A couple sprigs of fresh rosemary

Directions:

Dump juice concentrate and lemonade concentrate into a large punch bowl. Add sparkling water and whiskey. Stir until everything is well combined. Add lots of ice, which will dilute the punch over time...and that's okay! Slice up lemon and orange into rounds and place on top as a garnish. For a more Christmas-y punch, also add cranberries and rosemary as a garnish.



It was a huge hit this year, evidenced by the fact that the punch bowl needed to be refilled a couple of times throughout the evening! So, thank you, Grandpa, for this recipe and the chance to carry on the tradition not just in our family, but with others, as well! And thank you, Aunt Linda, for opening your home to family and fun and new traditions!