When I’m hosting at home for the holidays, I like to kick off the evening by serving a signature cocktail. There are a few ways to go about this: You can mix drinks individually, or serve a large-batch recipe over ice in a pitcher or punch bowl, or you can prepare a bottled batched cocktail. Bottled batched cocktails are a very delicate sort and include the addition of just enough water to the recipe to simulate the ice that would have melted into the cocktail during the shake or stir. In general, the best batched recipes involve little to no citrus juice or bitters, which can spoil an entire batch if prepared more than a few of hours in advance. Though it’s impossible to conjure the body and mouthfeel of a cocktail without actually shaking it over ice, stirred cocktail recipes and recipes without citrus work mysteriously well when bottled.

Leishla Maldonado’s Winter in Pear-adise is a stunning cocktail that can be batched, bottled and prepared up to 2 days before the party. Thomas Tew Rum is the base of the cocktail, a coordinated chorus of oak and spice blending with round fruity notes from the pear nectar and a smack of sweetness from grade-A maple syrup. The plum wine fortifies the batch with a delicate surge of fruity floral acidity, adding dimension and depth to the recipe. A playful curl of orange peel garnishes the cocktail, just enough zest to spark the aromatics and send the senses soaring.