Six Fall Cocktails To Sip On This Season
Fall means the air gets cooler, the days get shorter, and kids are headed back to school. Many look forward to the season for a return of their favorite fall fashion trends. And some are stoked to bust out the fall decorations and try their hand at all the ways you can use pumpkins as décor. Others look forward to it as the time when Starbucks, among other places, features pumpkin spice on its menu.
But it's not just with your coffee that you can celebrate fall. These eight yummy cocktails all feature classic fall flavors. If you're not really sure where to start, you may enjoy the convenience of a cocktail kit already put together for you, or channel your inner mixologist by pulling together the ingredients yourself. So once you've got your house decorated for fall, you can kick back and savor one of these autumn-inspired tipples.
Always enjoy responsibly!
1. Sparkle Maple Old Fashioned
The history of the Old Fashioned is a bit of a muddled one, but, at least in America, it dates back to 1880, according to Thrillist. Many give credit to the Pendennis Club in Louisville, where member James E. Pepper had the drink made in his honor, and Pepper then brought attention to the cocktail on his visits to the Waldorf Astoria in New York City, per James E. Pepper. Traditionally, an old fashioned cocktail includes sugar, water, Angostura bitters, and bourbon or rye whiskey.
For a fun fall variation of the classic cocktail, enjoy a Sparkle Maple Old Fashioned. WhistlePig, a Vermont whiskey distillery, paired with Runamok Maple to create a Barrel-Aged Sparkle Maple Syrup, and the syrup will make your fall old fashioned literally sparkle thanks to the pearlescent mica in the syrup. Here's their recipe:
Combine 1½ fluid ounces of rye whiskey — they recommend their WhistlePig PiggyBack 100% Rye — with ¼ fluid ounces of sparkle maple syrup and three dashes of bitters. Mix thoroughly, add ice, and garnish with a fresh orange peel.
2. Maple Sour two ways
Traditionally a whiskey sour uses simple syrup — made from equal parts water and sugar — to sweeten the drink. But take that classic drink and make it perfect for fall by swapping simple syrup for maple syrup, creating a maple sour. Combine 1½ fluid ounces of bourbon with an ounce of fresh lemon juice and ½ fluid ounce of maple syrup. Add a pinch of cinnamon to a cocktail shaker full of ice and after shaking well, pour into an ice-filled lowball glass, per Cookie + Kate. "Tapping into rich fall flavors like local maple syrup and full-bodied red wine, the Maple Sour tastes like autumn in a glass," explains Ashley Moore, Beverage Manager at the Rum Bar at the Caribe Royale Orlando.
Then there's the New York sour, which is basically a whiskey sour with a float of red wine. Adding the red wine amps up the fall feel to your cocktail. Here's the New York Distilling Company's recipe: Combine 1½ fluid ounces of whiskey and ½ fluid ounce each of red wine, maple syrup, and lemon juice in a cocktail shaker. Add ice, shake, and double strain. Serve it in a lowball glass with ice and garnish with an orange peel.
3. The Fall Collins
The Tom Collins is another vintage cocktail with a few origin story variations, depending on who you ask, according to Liquor.com. But no matter how it came together, the cocktail is a tasty mix of gin, lemon juice, sugar, and club soda, often enjoyed in the summer. But for a fall twist on the Tom Collins, The Griffo Distillery in Petaluma, California, came up with The Fall Collins.
Here's how to make it: Combine 1½ fluid ounces gin — they recommend their own Scott Street gin — with ¾ fluid ounces Morris Kitchen Spiced Apple Syrup, and ½ fluid ounces lemon juice in a cocktail shaker. After a good shake, pour over ice and add three-to-four drops of Chai'Walla bitters. For the garnish, use dried apple slices. Optionally, you can also add a splash of club soda.
If you don't want to shop for each of those ingredients separately, The Griffo Distillery sells a Fall Collins cocktail kit with enough to make 12 cocktails.
4. The fall version of sangria and mimosas
Apple cider sangria is incredibly easy to put together, making it a cocktail perfect for parties. Slice up a Granny Smith apple, a Honeycrisp apple, a lemon, and an orange and put them into a large pitcher. Then pour in a bottle of ginger beer and a bottle of white wine, via The Lemon Bowl. Voila, it's just that simple.
Nearly as simple to make is an apple cider mimosa. You may know mimosas best as a brunch favorite of champagne and orange juice, but you can switch it up for fall by swapping out the orange juice for apple cider. If you want to amp up the cocktail's presentation — and this is where it may take a bit more individual prep time – The Cookie Rookie suggests wetting the rims of your champagne flutes and then dipping them in edible silver and gold sprinkles.
5. Cranberry Apple Margarita
It's easy to pull together a pitcher of cranberry apple margaritas for a party, per My Sequined Life. Combine 1½ cups each of tequila, apple cider, and cranberry juice — you can use cranberry juice cocktail instead of 100% cranberry juice — with ¾ cups of orange juice. You can swap the orange juice for the same amount of orange liqueur. The orange juice (or liqueur) takes the place of lime in a traditional margarita by bringing in a citrus flavor. If you want to make your cranberry apple margarita fancy, serve it with a slice of apple garnish and rim the edge of the glass with a mix of granulated and brown sugar.
Another more time-intensive version of a cranberry apple margarita involves you making your own apple cinnamon tequila, per Edible Delmarva. In a large, well-sealing jar, put in two cinnamon sticks, slices from two large apples, and 750 milliliters of tequila. Shake it and then store it in a cool, dark place for five to seven days, stirring each day. Once you like the flavor, strain out the apples and cinnamon sticks.
For the margarita, combine 2 ounces of your homemade apple cinnamon tequila with ½ fluid ounce of triple sec, 1 fluid ounce of cranberry juice, and ½ fluid ounce of fresh lime juice in an ice-filled cocktail shaker. Shake well and serve in a chilled glass.
6. An Apple a Day
If you want to show off your bartender skills, try your hand at making "An Apple a Day." Created for The Bar at The Spectator Hotel in Charleston, South Carolina, this cocktail is like a boozy apple pie in a glass. It starts with making spiced syrup. Put 1 cup water and 6 cinnamon sticks, 6 dried allspice berries, 3 whole cloves, and ¼ teaspoon nutmeg in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Let it simmer at reduced heat for 15 minutes, and then slowly stir in 1 cup of sugar. Strain with a fine mesh strainer, and keep the syrup in the refrigerator — in a covered container. It should last at least a couple of weeks. You'll use ¾ fluid ounces of the spice syrup in the cocktail.
Combine 1 fluid ounce of bourbon, ½ fluid ounce of apple brandy, ½ fluid ounce of vanilla liqueur, 1 fluid ounce of apple cider, ¾ fluid ounce of lemon juice, and ¾ fluid ounce of spice syrup in a cocktail shaker and shake well. Garnish with a thin slice of Granny Smith apple.