Cider & Bourbon

Sometimes the best recipes are the simplest ones. This fall, we're drinking a cocktail that falls into this category. Delicious apple cider, small-batch bourbon, and a hint of those quintessential fall spices that we start longing for this time of year.

Of course, while stirring bourbon and cider together on their own would be a perfectly tasty beverage, add some fall spices to the mix and you have something truly special. We grabbed some cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, and a few cardamom seeds, and then added them to our shaker along with the bourbon and cider. A minute or two of shaking, and you've got yourself a beautifully spiced cocktail -- not overly cloying like the off-the-shelf spiced ciders can be.

We have enjoyed our cider & bourbons a couple of ways: in a jam jar (rustic-style) and in a martini glass (ever-so sophisticated). This drink is ready for whatever occasion you have in mind. If it is sweater-weather, then the cider & bourbon is entirely appropriate.

Cider & Bourbon

• 3 oz apple cider

• 2 oz bourbon

• 1/2 cinnamon stick

• 5 whole cloves

• 5 cardamom seeds

• Apple cross section, for garnish

Vigorously shake cider, bourbon, and spices in a shaker with ice for a minute or two. Pour into glass, and garnish with apple slice. Enjoy!

Ginger Gold Rush Cocktail

This cocktail is sweet and spicy and makes for a delicious fall treat.  The golden color goes perfectly with the leaves, but it’s a refreshing change from all that cinnamon, apple, and pumpkin floating around these days.  This cocktail features pure sweet & spicy ginger, bourbon, and a squeeze of lemon.

We tried out a delicious small batch bourbon for this recipe.  It’s called Black Maple Hill.  An authentic Kentucky Bourbon, this baby has tasting notes of “vanilla, caramel, spice and nectarine. Very smooth without being cloying or flat.”  Thanks to the reviewers here for those notes; my palate loves this bourbon but comes up short with the adjectives. I’d make a terrible perfumier!

Another thing to love about this cocktail is it’s simplicity.  Three ingredients, a citrus twist if you want to be fancy, and serve. 

Ginger Gold Rush

• 1.5 ounces Bourbon
• 1.5 ounces Ginger Liqueur (we used Canton)
• .5 ounces fresh lemon juice

Combine all three ingredients in a shaker with ice.  Shake well, then strain into a martini glass.  Serve with a citrus twist if desired.

Bourbon Cream Float

Yep. Three indulgences come together to make one adults-only dessert which is still just a kid at heart. 

I recently waxed poetic about bourbon for our cocktail column at Whole Foods. Now I am finding myself looking for new and different ways to use bourbon other than the time-honored Old Fashioned. Pouring it over a scoop or two of ice cream seemed well worth a try. (Better yet was the notion of pouring it over our new favorite bourbon from local distillery Dancing Pines.)

I will confess that I'd meant to pick up root beer at the market when I picked up cream soda instead. At first I was irritated, but then I realized a cream soda float didn't sound half bad. In fact, it is delicious! The cream soda (we used Virgil's) is mellower than root beer and lets the bourbon flavor really shine through.

[Note: Toddler is salivating over the prospect of forthcoming ice cream, not booze.]

Bourbon Cream Float

• 1-2 scoops vanilla ice cream

• 2 oz bourbon

• cream soda

1. Scoop ice cream into a tall glass.
2. Pour bourbon over ice cream.
3. Fill glass to top with cream soda. Enjoy!

Clementine, Bourbon, & Clove

This wintery drink features fresh squeezed clementine juice, which is shaken vigorously with three whole cloves and a measure of bourbon. The whole cloves are what is special here - they give off the perfect tiny amount of their essence without overwhelming the drink.

Cloves and citrus are such a perfect winter combo, but cloves can be too overwhelming. We came up with the idea to shake a few cloves with the drink in an effort to rub off the best of their warmth and spice while keeping the source of this aromatic hint unobtrusive and a little mysterious.

And let me say a little something about the bourbon.  I’ve always been a little freaked out by bourbon, imagining it to be a sickly sweet version of whiskey.  I’m not sure where I got that idea, but it was crazy.  Here’s a more accurate & delicious description of nice bourbon from tastings.com:
“Flavor descriptors such as toffee, pralines, vanilla, and dried fruit to describe the initial rush of flavors in a good, well-aged Bourbon. The charred oak barrels give Bourbon a distinctive spicy oak firmness that is unique to American whiskeys.”

The bright little clementines were so simple to cut in half and juice – I used my citrus juicer to make it go even faster. We needed about 2 clementines per drink.


Here’s our recipe:

Clementine, Bourbon, & Clove Cocktail

• 1/4 c. fresh squeezed clementine juice (about 2 clementines)
• 1 oz. bourbon
• 3 whole cloves

Combine all ingredients, plus ice, in a shaker.  Shake vigorously, the strain into a sugar rimmed martini glass.  And don’t worry – these would be excellent over ice in a cocktail glass as well.

Mint Julep

With summer continuing to grace us with scorching days, we looked to our flourishing pots of mint for cocktail inspiration. It was high time to tried some icy and refreshing mint juleps.

Our recipe is less sweet than many sugary versions that are out there. It is a very strong drink. Bourbon, lots of ice, a touch of sugar, and a hint of mint. The mint is muddled into the drink, but it lends only a subtle flavor. The sprig of mint used as a garnish is for the benefit of your nose.

Mint juleps are traditionally served in a silver or pewter julep cup. I have two vintage pewter julep cups that I dug out of storage for this recipe, and it was so fun to drink out of them that I'm looking forward to using them for future non-julep cocktails! Be sure to grasp them by the rim as you drink, so that you don't ruin the lovely frost (and warm up the drink).

If you're not lucky enough to have inherited pewter julep cups, you can check them out over at amazon.  We can't vouch for any brand in particular, but we do know that it is really fun to drink out of the frosty cups!

This recipe calls for crushed ice, and it really is necessary because you need those smaller ice shards to melt and tone down your very alcoholic beverage. We don't have ice makers in our refrigerators, so we grabbed a hammer, placed our ice cubes in a tea towel, and wailed away. It worked quite well!

Mint Julep

• 3 sprigs of fresh mint

• 1 1/2 tsp powdered sugar

• 3 oz bourbon

• crushed ice

Place 8 or so mint leaves in the bottom of a pre-chilled julep cup or double old-fashioned glass. Add sugar and muddle a bit to bruise the mint leaves. Fill the glass about 2/3 with crushed ice, and pour  in bourbon. Stir everything together (a julep cup will frost), and then pack glass with more ice until it is full. Top drink with a lush sprig of mint. Makes 1 drink.