The recipe for a good alcohol-free punch
Without alcohol, a drink needs three things to taste grown-up: acidity, bitterness or spice, and fizz. Sweet juice alone tastes flat.
- Squeeze in fresh lime or lemon juice.
- Add a pinch of spice or a few drops of bitters if you have alcohol-free ones, or tea, to give some depth.
- Add the soda at the last minute, so it stays lively.
- Chill everything, and use one big block of ice so the punch does not go watery.
1. Green slime punch
Scoop 1 litre of lime sherbet into the bowl. Add 1.5 litres of chilled pineapple juice and the juice of 4 limes, then pour in 1 litre of ginger ale. The sherbet melts into a green foam. This is the one most children go for, and it works in a plastic cauldron too.
2. Pumpkin patch punch
Combine 1.5 litres of orange juice, 1 litre of apple juice and a teaspoon of cinnamon. Chill, and top with 750 ml of ginger ale or sparkling water. Float orange slices and cloves on top.
3. Vampire's blood punch
Mix 1 litre of cranberry juice, 750 ml of pomegranate juice and 500 ml of red grape juice with the juice of 2 limes. Top with sparkling water. Float peeled lychees with a blueberry pushed into each, to look like eyeballs. It is the same blood-red colour as many of our cocktails, but without a drop of alcohol.
4. Purple potion punch
Brew 1 litre of strong butterfly pea flower tea, which is naturally blue, and let it cool. Combine it with 1 litre of white grape juice, and stir in the juice of 3 lemons: the acid changes the colour from blue to purple in front of your guests. Top with soda.
5. Witch's cauldron cider
Heat 2 litres of apple juice with 4 cinnamon sticks, 6 cloves, a few strips of orange peel and a slice of ginger. Simmer gently for 15 minutes and keep warm. Serve in mugs, with a cinnamon stick. It is warming for a cold night of trick-or-treating.
6. Ghost-white coconut punch
Mix 1 litre of coconut water, 500 ml of pineapple juice, 250 ml of coconut cream and the juice of 3 limes. Top with soda, and scoop in a little vanilla ice cream for a pale, creamy foam. Float a few round slices of banana or dried lychee on top for a ghostly look.
Who the alcohol-free bowl is for
More guests than you think are not drinking. Children, designated drivers, people who take medicines, people in recovery and guests who simply prefer not to drink all benefit from a drink that looks and tastes special. Pregnancy is another common reason: the NHS explains that drinking alcohol in pregnancy can raise the risk of problems for the baby, so many pregnant guests choose to avoid it entirely.
Check the labels of anything you buy. Some products sold as non-alcoholic, such as certain "alcohol-free" beers and spirit alternatives, still contain up to 0.5% alcohol, which matters for guests who avoid alcohol completely.
Keeping the sugar in check
Juice, sherbet and soda add up, and a sugary punch can leave children bouncing off the walls. To lighten any of these recipes, replace half the juice with sparkling water or unsweetened tea, use less sherbet, and add more lime or lemon for sharpness. Small cups also help: a punch served in 150 ml cups is easier to enjoy than a giant tumbler.
Spooky touches that cost nothing
- Ice: freeze fruit, or a clean plastic glove filled with juice, in the block.
- Rims: dip glasses in syrup and then in dark sugar or crushed biscuits.
- Labels: write "Witch's brew" or "Bat blood" on small cards by each bowl.
- Dry ice: use it only in a separate bowl under or inside the punch bowl, never in the drink, and never near young children. Read the safety rules in our Halloween punch ideas.
Serving a mixed crowd
At a party with children and adults, keep the alcohol-free punch in the main bowl and make any alcoholic version in a separate, clearly labelled bowl or in individual glasses. Never add spirits to the shared bowl after guests have started drinking from it.
Read more about how alcohol-free drinks are made, and why they are becoming popular, in the rise of zero-proof drinks, and find everything we publish about zero-proof drinks.
More Halloween drinks
For the grown-ups, our collection of Halloween cocktails has 15 spooky recipes, and our guide to Halloween drinks with alcohol has easy ideas by spirit.
