5 Bespoke Autumn Cocktails for a Trendy Thanksgiving
You’ve got your favorite Thanksgiving sides lined up, and your best desserts are ready to go, but what about cocktails? We have a few new and unique ideas for you, especially with the canned pumpkin shortage limiting your pumpkin flavored dishes and drinks. Each of these autumn cocktails was hand-crafted by a talented mixologist to highlight one of our favorite seasonal fall ingredients.
1. The Baked Apple 46
Cody Goldstein, founder of Muddling Memories and Head Bartender at Upholstery Store: Food and Wine, created this drink to highlight the flavor of ripe autumn apples spiced with cinnamon.
Ingredients
2 parts Maker’s 46
½ part apple brandy
¼ part cinnamon syrup
2 dashes baked apple bitters
Smoked cinnamon Stick, to garnish
Lemon twist, to garnish
Directions
Fill rocks glass with ice and set aside. Combine Maker’s 46, apple brandy, cinnamon syrup and apple bitters in a mixing glass. Fill with ice and stir for 10 seconds. Empty the ice from the rocks glass. Take a lighter and heat the end of the cinnamon stick. When it starts to smoke, rim it around the inside of the glass. Strain into the rocks glass with a 2 inch ice cube. Add a lemon twist and serve.
2. The Sugar Island Ginger Snap
This rum cocktail, also created by Goldstein, highlights a slightly more unique combination: that of apple and ginger. A bit of autumnal rosemary adds an intriguing finishing touch.
Ingredients
2 parts Sugar Island spiced rum
½ part lime juice
½ part ginger liqueur
Apple cider, to fill
Rosemary sprig as garnish
Directions
Add all ingredients except the cider and garnish to a shaker. Dry shake for 5 seconds. Fill the Collins glass with ice and top ¾ of the way with apple cider. Float the remaining ingredients from the shaker over the top. Quickly alight the rosemary sprig for the garnish and place on top of cocktail.
3. The Holiday CRUZ
Come Christmas, you’ll likely be relying heavily on egg nog, but we prefer this autumnal maple drink for Thanksgiving. CRUZ silver tequila forms the base of this drink, created by Niccole Trzaska of New York’s The Liberty. The cocktail is sweetened with maple, Baileys and cream.
Ingredients
1 ¼ parts CRUZ Silver Tequila
¾ part Crown Maple Syrup / Baileys mixture
1 part cream
sprinkles and whipped cream, for garnish
Directions
Shake all ingredients together over ice; top with whipped cream and sprinkles.
4. Rosemary Kicker
If you don’t love your cocktails sweet, this herbaceous creation by Goldstein is perfect for you. Rosemary-infused olive juice and white peppercorn syrup add a unique spice to this holiday creation.
Ingredients
2 parts Ménage à trois vodka
½ part ounce Lillet
¼ part white peppercorn syrup
¼ part rosemary infused olive juice
Directions
Combine all ingredients into a mixing glass, fill with ice and stir for 10 seconds. Double strain into a couple glass and garnish with a rosemary sprig.
5. The Nutty Neige
Pecan pie might be your favorite finishing touch for Thanksgiving, but this nutty drink created by Goldstein is a great way to get the meal off to a great start as well. Amaro adds the nutty base to the drink, which is finished off with candied pecan syrup for a sweet and flavorful cocktail you’ll love.
Ingredients
1 part QUI Tequila
½ part Averna Amaro
½ part candied pecan syrup
½ part Aperol
¼ part Campari
Grapefruit twist, to garnish
Directions
Combine all ingredients in a mixing glass, fill with ice and stir for 10 seconds. Pour into a rocks glass with large ice cube and garnish with grapefruit twist and pecan.
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