We were fortunate to talk with The Punch Vixen just in time to receive, what is now, our New Year’s Eve Punch of Choice.
But before we talked recipes, we needed to hear how she became the punch vixen in the first place.
She proceeded to tell us about The Studio Guild (a cooperative office space run by her husband, Tate, in Midtown Manhattan) – “Twice a year, we throw a huge party at the Studio Guild. There is the annual Holiday Hangover party in January (because who needs another holiday party in December?), as well as a Summer blowout. Over the years, these parties have become legendary. We throw the party in the actual office space, and what used to take place on half of the 10th floor, now takes up the entire 10th and 11th floors and includes a DJ and dance floor on 11.
With over 300 people coming to each party, there is really no other way to affordably serve drinks all night long. Punch allows me to prep many of the recipes in advance. I also can get 3 or 4 batches flowing at the same time. As the night wears on, I generally move from the more complex recipes into the quick and easy ones. There is a general flow to the evening that everyone has come to expect. While I have been making punches for over ten years now, many of my punch recipes were perfected over the past six years of Studio Guild shindigs. You have to get good at making these recipes on the fly in order to keep a large and raucous crowd happy!”
So, she shared a “low-brow, huge fan favorite” punch. She warned that she usually makes this punch in very large quantities so it may need some modifications, but in general:
1 bag ice
1 handle vodka (don’t attempt to make this recipe with any fancy-ass vodka…Popov will do you just fine)
Juice of 3 oranges
Juice of 6 lemons
2 -4 oranges cut into thin half wheels
4 – 6 liters club soda (depending on how strong you want punch to be)
Tang to taste – start with 1 C and add until you reach desired oranginess (yes, that is a word) and color
2 orange or yellow glow sticks – place them directly into the punch!
Glow sticks in punch? Genius!
Before we concluded, she had one last tip,”When mixers run low at the end of a party, drunkards always try to mix Tang directly into cheap vodka and serve it as a shot. I DO NOT recommend this, unless your goal is to wind up sleeping on the floor with a file folder serving as your pillow, and nothing but a blue feather boa to keep you warm. (You know who you are, Blake H.)”
Point noted.