As Halloween approaches, I offer four spine-chilling cocktails made with spirits from around the state of New Mexico. Don’t be afraid. Make cocktail hour into the witching hour!

THE HUNGER

I named this drink after a hungry weekend in the summer of 1998 that I spent in the then-not-so-vegan-friendly desert city of Truth or Consequences. On that hot cruel day, I recall ordering a tofu salad and being presented with nothing more than soggy, raw tofu heaped on a pile of iceberg lettuce. The horror! I only wish that I could have at least had bourbon, Coke, and peanuts for a little more sustenance; hence, in remembrance, I present The Hunger.

For this simple drink, I recommend Las Cruces Distilling Co.’s DW Wright Bourbon Whiskey. A remarkably smooth bourbon, DW Wright gets its flavor from a visit to Kentucky, where it spends two years in oak barrels before heading back to Las Cruces for bottling. Mix the bourbon with the Coke over ice and toss in a few peanuts, careful not to include any candy corn. Spook-takular!

• 2 ounces DW Wright Bourbon Whiskey
• 4 ounces Coca-Cola
• A handful of salted peanuts
• Ice

SOMETHING BLUE

On the morning of Halloween 2022, I awoke to find that I was the new editor of a daily newspaper famous for its UFO reporting in Roswell. I steadied myself and made my way to work through the foggy streets of town. Arriving early, I found that my new office resembled Eisenhower’s yard sale, with the requisite wood paneling and broken chair. Digging through my wooden desk, I was shocked at what I found. No, not a fragment of a UFO, but rather, a heap of leftover plastic cutlery suggesting the previous editor had been eating at Subway regularly. A wretched fate!

I recalled that foggy, gruesome morning as I brewed up Something Blue, an easy take on a vodka tonic using Teller Blueberry Lavender Infused Vodka from Safe House Distilling Co. in Albuquerque. Teller’s has done a phenomenal job creating a vodka with a distinctive look, but without the sticky sweetness often found in fruit-infused spirits. For this cocktail, I lean on the color, glassware, and garnish for the pizazz. I recommend you build and stir it in a different glass and transfer to something spell-binding for Halloween. Scary-good!

• 2 ounces Teller Blueberry Lavender Infused Vodka
• 6 ounces tonic water (for me, Zero Sugar Canada Dry)
• Lemon garnish
• Ice

SOMETHING RED

In 2004, before the film industry really took off in New Mexico, I was the still photographer on a horror film directed by Scotty Milder called Something Red. It’s a sweet little short film shot at the Budville Trading Company, an abandoned gas station off I-40 between Albuquerque and Grants, where the town’s namesake, Bud Rice, was murdered during a robbery in 1967. The story centers on a gory corpse that comes to life and saves a young girl from the horrors of a boring road trip with her parents—a voyage of the damned, no doubt.

Twenty years later and still alive, I conjured a cocktail I call Something Red. It’s a take on a Bloody Mary using CLARO Clear Diamond Vodka from Algodones Distillery. This clean, bright corn vodka is five times distilled for a smooth taste, and is paired with a spicy V8 and a no-nonsense approach. Many people make a Bloody Mary far more complex than it needs to be. Just run a lime around the rim of the glass and build the drink with a cocktail spoon, making sure to stir in the horseradish. The order of the ingredients makes little difference, though I prefer to top with Tabasco for that spicy kickoff. Boo-tiful!

• 2 ounces CLARO Clear Diamond Vodka from Algodones Distillery
• 4 ounces V8 Spicy Hot
• 2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon horseradish
• 4 dashes Tabasco
• 1 lime
• Pinch of celery salt
• 1 stalk celery
• Ice

THE CAMP MARTINI

Elvira has been making every day Halloween for decades, all while cracking campy jokes and looking a little shocked about it. Somehow, Elvira is bubbly yet gothic, a rare mix that she blends impeccably. So when creating a cocktail with a gin that bears her name, I first considered putting together a take on a French 75. Then I thought about how simply perfect was her valediction, “Cruelly yours,” and I knew that her eponymous gin was fated to be in a perfect martini. Fang-tastic!

For the Camp Martini, I use Elvira, Mistress of the Dark Autumnal Gin from As Above, So Below Distillery out of Santa Fe. The Elvira gin is plenty smooth and warm, with botanicals like allspice and cardamom that scare up thoughts of fall. The mugwort might just be in there for fun. Stirred, not shaken, this mean martini is made with a chilled glass, a hint of two vermouths, and a blood orange slice for full effect. Scream-worthy!

• 2 ounces Elvira, Mistress of the Dark Autumnal Gin
• A dash of both dry and sweet vermouth
• Blood orange slice, for garnish