By Rose Kennedy

Who cares about figgy pudding? Oh give us a creative Christmas-theme cocktail every time, something that really says, "'Tis the season!"

"I think every household should have its own holiday punch and always remember to invite the neighbors over to try it," says Seattle-based A.J. Rathbun, author of Good Spirits: Recipes, Revelations, Refreshments, and Romance, Shaken and Served with a Twist (Harvard Common Press). "Not only will communal punch-ing instill the right holiday spirit, it also makes it easy to try a variety of festive beverages, which is never a bad thing."

FineLiving.com has provided good recipes for all sorts of seasonal revelry, from a bowl of office-party champagne punch to hot-cha-cha martinis for hot holiday dates and shooters to chase away the shopping blues. Drinks for a crowd, a sipper for a lone present wrapper . . . give yourself the gift of some special cocktail recipes.

First: A.J.'s Christmas Punch

Photos Rose Kennedy except where noted otherwise.

Special thanks to the Northshore Brasserie (www.northshorebrasserie.com) in Knoxville, Tenn., which hosted the photo shoot for 10 Merry Christmas Cocktails