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Heering Merry Cherry Christmas Cocktail Competition
We're looking for the best new Heering Cherry Liqueur cocktails inspired by Christmas. As an incentive to drive your creativity, our friends at Heering are offering 'cash' prizes for the best original cocktail recipes created by professional bartenders and home cocktail enthusiasts, with prizes for each category.
Cocktails which celebrate or are inspired by special occasions or notable days are always popular, and none more so than Christmas. One of the liqueurs most identified with the festive period, and indeed the winter mouth, is rich, fruity and indulgent cherry liqueur. Established in 1818, Heering is the world's original and most awarded cherry liqueur.
Your challenge is to create a delicious cherry liqueur cocktail that others will want to make and enjoy in bars and homes worldwide; hence your cocktail should also be easy to replicate, made using easily available ingredients without the need to pre-combine ingredients.
Your cocktail must include at least 15ml (½oz) Heering cherry liqueur.
Cocktails based on fewer than eight ingredients are preferred, but nine is the maximum number permitted, including fruit juices, syrups, drops or dashes. (Solid garnishes are not counted as ingredients; neither is an additional spray of citrus fruit zest over the drink if specified as a garnish.)
Entries will only be considered where a photograph of the finished cocktail has been uploaded to accompany the recipe. These photographs may be taken with your phone, and you may also want to include a bottle of Heering Cherry Liqueur behind your cocktail.
When naming your cocktail, please don't use rude, lurid or sexual words or names that may offend. It's for Christmas; be nice!
Prizes
As well as 'cash' prizes for the two winning cocktails and runners-up, I'll send signed copies of my book to all the winners:
2 bartender winners
- Best bartender cocktail wins €500 Euros
- 1 runner-up will win €250 Euros
2 home cocktail enthusiast winners
- Best enthusiast's cocktail wins €500 Euros
- 1 runner-up will win €250 Euros
Enter
Please complete the short form on the ENTER page. If you are already a Difford's Guide member and you are logged in, then we already have your name and email. If you are new to Difford's Guide, then you'll be asked for this additional information to become a member and upload your cocktail recipe.
Judges & judging criteria
The competition will be judged by Simon Difford (of this manor) and Max de Smit (Global Brand Ambassador).
The most delicious yet easy-to-replicate recipes will receive the highest scores, awarded for:
Taste = out of 50 points
Ease to replicate = out of 20 points
Name = out of 10 points
Photo/video = out of 10 points
Broad appeal/potential to become a contemporary classic = out of 10 points
Key Dates
31 October 2025 - Competition opens
30 November 2025 - Midnight Greenwich Mean Time – Competition closes
17th December 2025 - Winners informed
