Tropical, Travel-Inspired Cocktails to Ring in Your New Year

Guavaberry is one of St. Martin’s most famous flavours and exports. Boasting a complex flavour profile including woody, sweet, and spicy notes, Guavaberry is carefully cultivated on both the French and Dutch sides of the island and used in jams, spreads, and spirits.

This simple cocktail, a take on a French kir royale combining black currant liqueur and champagne, highlights the incredible flavour of St. Martin’s Guavaberry Liqueur.

1 oz St Maarten Guavaberry Liqueur

5 oz champagne

Pour pre-chilled liqueur into a frozen champagne glass. Top with chilled champagne and dress with a small curl of orange skin.

Nothing says lazing around in the sunshine like Sangria, which originated in the Mediterranean sun of Spain. This version, from Antigua and Barbuda in the Caribbean, draws on the local flavor of refreshing sorrel. Sorrel is a tangy, intensely aromatic brew with a trademark red colour derived from the plant of the same name - a close relative of Hibiscus. Sorrel drinks are the holiday drink in the Caribbean!

1 bottle of red wine

1 cup of sorrel juice

1/2 cup of hibiscus tea

1/2 cup of brandy or rum

Assorted fruits (pineapples, oranges, limes, grapes)

Brew your own hibiscus tea: place several (2-3 fresh or ¼ cup of dried flower) petals in a teapot and cover it with boiling water; allow to steep for approximately 5 minutes. Strain and bring to room temperature (preferably the tea should be chilled).

Combine red wine, sorrel juice, and hibiscus tea with brandy or rum in a large pitcher or punch bowl.Add sliced fruits of your choice to the mixture and let steep half a day before serving. When serving, include a mixture of the fruit.

Often mistaken as Hawaiian, tiki is actually imaginary, made of a collection of romanticized concepts of Polynesian and South Seas culture, including humanoid teak carvings, coconut shell bikini tops, grass skirts, pineapples… and powerful cocktails featuring pineapple, coconut, rum, and other tropical flavors. Tiki and tiki bars have become shorthand for ‘Pacific Island getaway’ and they abound in Hawaii.

A staple in any tiki bar, the Mai Tai is the perfect Summer drink- or your drink of choice during a visit to America’s Pacific island state.You’ll be carried to Hawaii’s clear blue waters after your first sip of this fruity concoction.

1 oz spiced rum

1 oz coconut rum

1 tsp grenadine syrup

2 oz pineapple juice

2 oz orange juice

Combine the rums, grenadine, and juices in a cocktail mixer with ice. Shake and strain into a glass of ice.*Party Tip: make these up a pitcher at a time with a bucket of ice and garnish handy.

Garnish with wedges of fresh pineapple on a skewer topped with a cherry.

With these 4 recipes delivering up the taste of tropical travel, why not dress up in beach wear and make your NYE party tropical beach-themed!

And to actually get away from winter weather, ask us to help you plan the perfect sun-kissed, island vacation for the New Year.