If you love everything about the flavors of fall, chances are good you’re looking for some delicious ways to enjoy your favorite alcoholic ingredients during this time of the year, too. Fall cocktails are easy to find, but for those who love bourbon, it can take a little planning and preparation to put together the perfect combination of flavors for times when the weather is beginning to cool down. Below, we’ve gathered a list of some of our favorite fall-themed bourbon cocktail recipes to help you get ready for your favorite season. Pick your favorites and give them a try on your own, or serve them at your Halloween or Thanksgiving get-togethers instead.
Apple Cider Bourbon
Ingredients
• 3 oz bourbon
• 1 cup fresh apple cider
• 1 cup ginger beer
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp sugar
• Ice
• Maple syrup
• Thinly-sliced apples
Directions
• On a shallow plate, combine sugar and cinnamon with a fork until well-mixed.
• Rub a little bit of maple syrup around the rim of each glass to rim them.
• Dip the rimmed glasses into the sugar mixture to coat.
• In a separate glass, bowl, or shaker, combine bourbon, apple cider, and ginger beer.
• Stir to mix well.
• Fill each prepared glass with ice and pour the drink evenly over the ice into each glass.
• Garnish with the thinly-sliced apples and serve.
Apple Butter Bourbon
Ingredients
• 2 oz bourbon
• 3 tbsp apple butter
• 6oz chilled ginger ale or ginger beer
• Pinch of cinnamon
• Fresh figs
• Orange wedges
• ½ tsp cinnamon
• 1 tbsp sugar
• Ice
Directions
• On a shallow plate, use a fork to combine the cinnamon and sugar.
• Use the orange wedges to rim the glasses in which you’ll be serving your cocktails.
• Dip the rimmed glasses in the sugar mixture to coat.
• Fill a cocktail shaker with ice.
• Add bourbon, apple butter, and pinch of cinnamon.
• Seal and shake to combine well for at least 30 seconds.
• Strain the drink into a cocktail glass and top the rest of the way with the chilled ginger ale or ginger beer.
• Garnish with figs in each drink.
• Serve immediately.
Ginger Bourbon
Ingredients
• ¼ cup water
• ¼ cup honey
• 1 one-inch piece of peeled and sliced ginger root, fresh
• 2 oz bourbon
• Juice of ½ a lemon
• 2 oz pear juice
• Ginger ale
• Crystallized ginger
• Pear, thinly sliced
Directions
• To begin with, you will need to make a simple syrup ahead of time.
• Add water, honey, and ginger root slices to a small saucepan and heat over medium until simmering.
• Stir to combine well until the honey dissolves.
• Remove from heat when honey has dissolved and let stand for at least 20 minutes.
• Strain the syrup into a storage container such as a mason jar. Do not use the ginger slices.
• Refrigerate overnight or until ready to make your cocktail.
• In a cocktail shaker, add bourbon, lemon juice, pear juice, and 1 ounce of the simple syrup you have just made.
• Fill the shaker the rest of the way with ice.
• Seal the shaker and shake well to chill all ingredients through.
• Fill a glass with ice and strain the drink over the ice into the glass.
• Top with enough ginger ale to fill the glass the rest of the way.
• Garnish with crystallized ginger and thinly sliced pear, optionally on skewers.
• Serve immediately before the ice has a chance to melt.
Cinnamon Whiskey Sour
Ingredients
• 2 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1.5oz bourbon
• 4 tsp maple syrup
• Pinch of ground cinnamon
• Ice
Directions
• In a cocktail shaker, add enough ice to fill about 2/3 of the shaker.
• Add the lemon juice, bourbon, maple syrup, and cinnamon to the shaker on top of the ice.
• Seal the shaker and shake well to combine, for about 20 seconds.
• Fill a cocktail glass with fresh ice.
• Strain the drink out of the shaker over the fresh ice in the cocktail glass.
• Serve immediately before the ice has a chance to start melting.
Fall Manhattan
Ingredients
• ¼ oz sweet vermouth
• 2 oz bourbon
• 2 dashes of bitters
• 1 tbsp maple syrup
• 1 maraschino cherry
Directions
• Before you begin, place a cocktail glass in the freezer to chill slightly while you prepare the drink.
• Add vermouth, bourbon, bitters, and maple syrup to a cocktail shaker.
• Fill the shaker the rest of the way with ice.
• Seal and shake vigorously for 15 seconds to combine well.
• Strain the drink into the chilled cocktail glass. There is no need to put ice in the glass for this type of drink.
• Add the maraschino cherry for a simple garnish and serve right away.
Maple Old Fashioned
Ingredients
• ½ oz pure, real maple syrup
• ¼ oz lemon juice, fresh
• ½ oz orange juice
• ½ of an orange wheel
• 4 dashes of bitters
• 2 oz bourbon
• 1.5oz chilled seltzer water
• Ice
Directions
• Add maple syrup, lemon juice, orange juice, and bitters to a rocks glass and stir to combine well.
• Add the half of an orange wheel and muddle slightly to release some of the orange flavor.
• Add the bourbon and stir to combine, but don’t over-stir.
• Add ice to fill the glass the rest of the way.
• Top off with the seltzer water. Do not stir. Serve immediately.
As you can see, there’s a lot you can do with bourbon in terms of fall cocktails. These recipes tend to have bold flavors and hearty ingredients that hold up well to the darker taste of bourbon, so they’re perfect for this season. When you’re looking for something to serve at your next fall party, don’t be afraid to break out one of the recipes listed above. You may just discover something new you and your guests will love!
Don’t forget to play around with flavors a little bit, too. These recipes often rely on cinnamon and maple to give them fall tastes, but you can change this up a little as well. For example, you might prefer nutmeg or pumpkin spice to cinnamon, so give yourself a chance to experiment a little with ingredients and see what you can create yourself.