Moonshine Punch, From Bathtub to Bowl

Shine just hasn’t survived, it’s been reinvigorated and reinvented with fresh cocktail recipes. The makeover we’re loving is moonshine punch. Sure, it’s legal, but it feels like we’re getting a way with something sinister when we heavy-hand pour it into the party bowl.

Three variations to put on your drink menu:

• Moonshine punch is unexpected enough, but when you add oolong tea, you make it a conversation piece. This recipe, the brainchild of Payman Bahmani of Umamimart.com, made its way around the Web when it nailed the “winning cocktail” prize at the Catdaddy Bar Chef Challenge during Tales of the Cocktail. We’re breaking it out for holiday parties because it’s just too spicy to save for summer.

Chinese Bootlegger Punch

Created by Payman Bahmani of Umamimart.com

• 5 cups Catdaddy Carolina Moonshine
• 5 cups brewed oolong tea (less than boiling water, steeped 5 to 6 minutes)
• 3 3/4 cups grapefruit juice
• 1 cup lemon juice
• 1 cup agave nectar syrup
• 3/4 cup cinnamon syrup
• 1/2 cup A.B. Smeby Forbidden Bitters
• 1/2 cup A.B. Smeby Spiced Grapefruit Bitters
• (serves 20, scale accordingly)

1. Mix everything together in a punch bowl and refrigerate, preferably an hour or two in advance so that the flavors can mingle. Add the big blocks of ice — the bigger the better because they’ll melt slower — when ready to serve, and garnish with a few lemon slices.

• When Martha Stewart posts moonshine cocktail recipes, color us intrigued. When one of them is a punch developed by Allen Katz, there’s a reason to host a party. This version lives up to the promise.

Moonlight Punch

Created by Allen Katz, host of Cocktail Hour.

• 2 ounces White Dog or Moonshine
• ½ ounce fresh lemon juice
• ½ ounce fresh orange juice
• ½ ounce real grenadine
• ½ ounce simple syrup
• 3 blackberries muddled

1. Shake ingredients over ice and strain into a collins glass filled with fresh ice. Top with club soda.

• You don’t have to hit The White Lightning Trail to sip authentic moonshine cocktails. This recipe, created by Tennessee bartenders, is proof that using the spirit is in their DNA.

Moonshine Mojito

Pair this refreshing take on the mint-based cocktail with Southern-inspired Happy Hour fare. Created by The Grill at the Highlands.

• Juice of one whole lime
• 10 mint leaves, from a single sprig
• Splash simple syrup (or just some granulated sugar)
• Soda water or Sprite, depending on your sweet tooth
• 1 1/2 ounces Great Smoky Mountain Distillery moonshine

1. Tear the mint leaves and muddle them in a highball glass.
2. Add cubed ice and moonshine. Fill glass with soda or Sprite, stir. Pour into another glass, and back into the original glass to serve.