Cider House Cocktail – One of the few cocktails on our site that I, myself, came up with on a recent night of entertaining. I’d made a few batches of Autumnal simple syrups (see below) and wanted a drink that truly captured the heart of my favorite of the four seasons. I’ve now made this one on a number of occasions and have heard nothing but praise, if I do say so myself. Put in the time on the syrups, and you will have a drink that can easily carry your cocktail parties through Christmas and extra syrup to add in other seasonal cocktails.
Ginger Simple Syrup – Boil three cups water with two cups light brown sugar until completely mixed – about three minutes. Add grated, peeled ginger (three fat ginger roots) to the boil and continue boiling and stirring for another three minutes. Remove pot from heat and let mixture stand until completely cool. Squeeze the cooled, shredded ginger over the pot, allowing the juice from the ginger root to fall into the mixture, then strain the syrup to remove any ginger root until the syrup is only liquid (I use a fine strainer). Bottle and store in refrigerator.
Apple Cider Syrup – Start with four cups apple cider, one cup light brown sugar, one cinnamon stick. Boil and stir ingredients until reduced by half (2 and ½ cups remaining, give or take). Cool to room temp, remove cinnamon, bottle and store in refrigerator.
Apple/Ginger Syrup – Combine equal measures (I fill one bottle with half of each mixture) of the above two syrups. Shake gently to combine. Store in refrigerator.
So having made the above, here we go…
Cider House Cocktail –
- 2 oz aged rum
- 1 oz Apple Jack or an apple brandy
- 3/4 oz fresh lime juice
- 1 1/2 oz Apple/Ginger Syrup
- 1 1/2 oz apple cider
Shake ingredients in cocktail shaker ’til ice-cold. Serve up in a cocktail glass or over ice in an old-fashioned glass. Dust with a little nutmeg and garnish with an apple wedge.
Stone Fence (Updated)
I still love the original Stone Fence cocktail found on our site, but this slightly different take is a lot of fun, too. Almost as easy to make, this tall drink will tickle your tastebuds as much as the crisp autumn air and falling leaves tickle your eyes and mood.
Here we go –
In a large tumbler, beer mug or tall glass, add ice. Pour in the following:
- 2 oz Apple Jack or apple brandy
- 2 oz apple cider
- couple shakes bitters
- fill with a good, bottled hard cider and stir
- dust with ground cinnamon, and garnish with an apple slice. This one will need a straw.
Apple Cider Martini
When you want to up the posh factor on a crisp fall night, an up, apple based martini is a good choice. This is a simple three ingredient cocktail that would be an excellent choice as a pre-dinner cocktail to tag in front of a rich chili, stew, soup or other hearty fare.
Here we go –
- 2 oz vodka
- 1 1/2 oz apple cider
- 1/3 oz ginger liqueur (I’ve used both the excellent Domaine de Canton and Jacquin’s Ginger Flavored Brandy which is so good, too).
Shake ingredients with ice in shaker till very cold. Pour up into a martini or cocktail glass, garnish with an apple slice.
Chatham Cocktail
This is a very solid, ginger based cocktail that I find an excellent pour when I want something fall-seasonal, yet different than the usual apple, cinnamon, nutty cocktails I equally cherish.
There’s just something about ginger in a drink that tastes so seasonal and old-worldly that when combined with a chilly night and some thick jazz, makes a fall night special. You’ll need to get your hands on a bottle of ginger brandy, but that shouldn’t be too hard…especially now.
Here we go –
- 2 oz gin
- 3/4 oz ginger brandy (once again, I use Jacquin’s)
- 1/2 oz lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp. powdered ginger
Shake/swirl ingredients lightly with ice in a shaker till cold. Pour up into a cocktail glass and garnish with a piece of ginger-candy and a little ground nutmeg.
