The best cocktails for Halloween
Six drinks that earn their place at a party - smoke, coffee, and something long and fruity.
16 October 2026
Every party needs a shortlist. These are the six the Cabin reaches for when the lights are low and somebody has carried a pumpkin in.
Smoke and coffee
Dark spirits do the work here. Rum over fiery ginger, mezcal behind a whisper of smoke, and an espresso martini for the people who still have somewhere to be afterwards.
One to make well
If you only build one of them, build the Painkiller. It is the most forgiving drink on this list - three ingredients in a jug with ice, nutmeg on top - and it tastes better than it has any right to.
Serve them in that order
Start long and fruity while people are arriving, move to the stirred drinks when the room has settled, and finish with the coffee one as a nightcap. Nobody has ever complained about this plan.
The drinks in this piece
60 ml Dark rum, 90 ml Pineapple juice, 30 ml Orange juice, 30 ml Coconut cream, 1 pinch Nutmeg, 1 Orange slice
60 ml Dark rum, 100 ml Ginger beer, 10 ml Lime juice, 1 Lime wedge
25 ml Gin, 25 ml Triple sec, 25 ml Lillet Blanc, 25 ml Lemon juice, 1 dash Absinthe, 1 Orange twist
60 ml Dark rum, 30 ml Passion fruit purée, 20 ml Lemon juice, 15 ml Grenadine, 10 ml Simple syrup, 1 Orange slice
30 ml Dark rum, 30 ml White rum, 15 ml Orange curaçao, 15 ml Orgeat, 20 ml Lime juice, 1 spent shell Lime, 1 Mint sprig
40 ml Vodka, 20 ml Coffee liqueur, 30 ml Espresso, 10 ml Simple syrup, 3 Coffee beans