Better than craft cocktails are witchcraft cocktails, the basis of author Julia Halina Hadas’s new book. WitchCraft Cocktails: 70 Seasonal Drinks Infused with Magic & Ritual is a comprehensive guide for anyone looking for a well-crafted cocktail to make at home.
Whether or not you’re into witchcraft, energies or herbal remedies, this unique book serves as a guide to those with many interests — namely, alcohol. Hadas is a practicing witch and bartender, and proves her deep knowledge of both subjects with a very in depth guide, beginning with the history of witchcraft and alcohol and how they intertwined in the past and today.
From there, she divvies up her book into bartending basics, witchcraft basics, and magical ingredients, before laying out an abundance of cocktail recipes for you to try. Here, you will learn the fascinating intricacies of cocktail ingredients and their usefulness both in and beyond the cocktail. For example, grenadine, which is commonly used in cocktails (and Shirley temples), is made from the juice of a pomegranate, which has magical properties such as creativity, money, death, fertility, luck and wishes. And each spirit has its own unique magical properties, as well. Gin, for example, which is comprised mainly of juniper, has protective and cleansing properties, making it a “go-to for cleansing, reversion and protective cocktails,” according to Hadas. Who knew?
All of the fun and bewitching cocktail recipes found in the book are broken up into seasons, so you never need to look around for the best options for Fall or Winter. Another enchanting element is that each recipe comes with an “advanced magic” option, allowing you to turn it up a notch with the addition of a certain tarot card or stone.
The Witch’s Cauldron, a cocktail based on the traditional scorpion bowl, was made to help one with divination, luck, love, blessings and spirituality, and can be advanced with the accompaniment of a rutilated quartz. Learn how and why you should make it:
The Witch’s Cauldron
What’s a witch without their mixing cauldron? Based on the infamous Scorpion Bowl, the deep red hue of this fall fruit punch will draw eyes to your magic work. Together, apple, pomegranate, and blood orange offer energies of divination, love, wealth, and fertility. It’s a perfect witch’s blessing to serve at a party! Garnish with a flamed orange wheel.
Energies: Divination, Luck, Love, Blessings, Spirituality
1 1⁄2 tbs. apple brandy
1 1⁄2 tbs. dark rum
1 tbs. lime juice
1 tbs. Grenadine (see recipe in Chapter 4)
1⁄2 tbs. pomegranate liqueur
1 jigger (1 1⁄2 oz.) blood orange juice
1 tbs. apple juice
Place all ingredients in a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake until chilled. Close your eyes and breathe deeply as you shake, focusing your intention energy into empowering the ingredients. Strain into a martini glass. Imagine the magical essence of the seasonal pomegranate, blood orange, and apple fusing together as you bless the concoction for all who drink it!
Advanced Magic: Rutilated Quartz
Rutilated quartz is a crystal of spiritual elevation and manifestation. With golden inclu- sions of the mineral rutile, this stone brings in elevating energy from the higher self into the material world, invoking positivity, manifestation, and all-around great energy. Use rutilated quartz to imbue your blessing punch with heightened spiritual energy. Gather a few pieces of this crystal and place them with intention around the pitcher or martini glass to allow its vibration to permeate your potion.
Once you get the hang of making cocktails and incorporating witchcraft, the back of the book offers classic cocktail recipes that you can use as a jumping point to experiment on your own concoctions.
Whether you’re into mixology, astrology or herbology, there’s a lot to be gleaned from the culmination of witchcraft and cocktails.
