“…once we kiss September goodbye and October arrives in all its glorious beauty, my cocktail cravings seem to myopically re-focus on just one spirit…bourbon.”
As the days get shorter, the air crisper, and the leaves transform to the classic colors of fall, my go-to cocktail list significantly narrows down. All summer long, I feel inspired to experiment with a wide variety of cocktail concoctions that highlight the bounty of fruits (and even veggies) we get to enjoy that time of year. My summertime cocktail favorites include: Watermelon Jalapeno Margaritas, Lavender Bees Knees, Strawberry Rhubarb Martinis, and Cucumber Mint Gimlets—a diverse array of fruity and herbal combinations that use either tequila, gin, or vodka as the base liquor.
However, once we kiss September goodbye and October arrives in all its glorious beauty, my cocktail cravings seem to myopically re-focus on just one spirit…bourbon. Its deep, rich caramel color evokes the warm color palette of autumn. On my tongue, bourbon gives off the faintest hint of maple syrupy sweetness, and nothing quite says fall like the taste of maple. Therefore, I suppose it makes perfect sense that all my favorite fall cocktails have bourbon as their base.
Although it was not at all challenging to pick the cocktails I wanted to include on this list, it was a bit challenging to decide the order in which they would be presented as that implies some sort of rank preference. I go on the record as loving them all almost equally! So, here it is! The list of my all-time favorite fall cocktails, in reverse order:
BEST Fall Cocktails Ever!
# 3 The Old Fashioned
A few years ago, we took a memorable trip to the Wisconsin Dells. It was June, high summer in Wisconsin, and as we took in the beautiful woodsy landscape, as well as the quirky fun of the Dells, we also became enchanted with the that most quintessential of Wisconsin traditions–the Supper Club. The Supper Club, as a cultural phenomena, first began popping up in Wisconsin (and soon all throughout the Upper Midwest) during Prohibition, but reached its peak during the glory days of auto-oriented travel, the 1950s and 1960s. Usually located on the outskirts of mid-sized towns and often perched on the edge of a picturesque lake, the Wisconsin Supper club tradition carries on through today and offers a fine dining experience with fare that highlights uniquely Wisconsin products, such as Walleye fish fresh from Lake Michigan and the famous Door Peninsula cherries, while also emphasizing the region’s predominantly German heritage. The result is a fabulous, almost kitschy mix of over-the-top relish trays, piled high with an astonishing assortment of pickled foods, endless hunks of Wisconsin cheddar cheese and crackers, over-sized platters of Weiner schnitzel or prime rib, and most importantly, the Old Fashioned cocktail, preferably made with brandy rather than bourbon, and often sweetened with lemon-lime soda, rather than sugar cubes or simple syrup.
While it was fun to experience a brandy-based Old Fashioned in Wisconsin, at home I still prefer using the more traditional bourbon base, a spirit that always evokes the taste of fall. Also, I draw the line at using saccharine-sweet lemon-lime soda as a mixer. After sifting through a lot of different recipes and some experimenting (always a happy past time), I’ve come to prefer the following as my go-to Old Fashioned recipe. It’s straightforward and requires ingredients you are likely to already have on hand anyway. Especially that old, wrinkly orange rolling around in the back of your refrigerator’s fruit drawer.
old fashioned cocktail recipe
Yields one drink
INGREDIENTS
1/2 teaspoon either sugar, simple syrup, or maple syrup
2-3 dashes Angostura bitters
1-2 dashes Angostura orange bitters (optional)
1 Tablespoon water
2 ounces bourbon
1-2 maraschino or bourbon-soaked cherries
1 orange
PREPARATION
Using a Y vegetable peeler, cut two strips of zest from the orange. Then cut orange in half crosswise into several slices to use as garnish.
Add the sugar (or simple or maple syrup), all bitters, and water into a rocks glass and stir well until sugar is dissolved.
Fill the glass with ice cubes. Add bourbon and gently stir to combine flavors and let the ice melt a little.
Twist the orange peel back and forth over the glass to express the oil over the cocktail. Drop in glass.
Garnish with a cherry (or two!) and and orange wheel if desired.
BEST Fall Cocktails Ever!
# 2 The Manhattan
There couldn’t possibly be a more quintessentially American cocktail than the Manhattan. Its name conjures all the mythos of opportunity, sophistication, and power imbued by its island namesake that the rest of America has always strived to emulate. Even its origin story reflects this mythos, however delusional, as America sought to lay claim to its most famous non-native son, Winston Churchill.
American heiress Jennie Jerome (1854-1921) was Winston Churchill’s mother, and she was a hugely significant part of that first wave of obscenely wealthy, Gilded Age-era American heiresses who married into British nobility, bringing with them a desperately-needed influx of cash into the British aristocracy (rough estimates indicate that by the turn of the 20th century, American heiresses ultimately injected over a billion pounds into the British economy). In return, American heiresses got a title and therefore, forever transformed and legitimized their previously gauche nouveau riche social standing both at home and abroad.
The origin story of the Manhattan is that Jennie Jerome herself (then Lady Randolph Churchill) actually invented the cocktail while attending a banquet at the Manhattan Club in November 1874 to celebrate Governor Samuel Tilden’s election victory. Given that Jennie was home at Blenheim Palace at this time, about to give birth to Winston (he was born on November 30, 1874) makes this origin story impossible. Additionally, the fact that no women were welcome to attend such political celebrations at the Manhattan Club during this time period only makes this story even less plausible. It is widely believed, however, that the Manhattan cocktail was indeed invented at the Manhattan Club sometime in the late 19th century; but, Jennie Jerome clearly had no role in its invention.
It’s suspected that the erroneous story of Jennie’s role in the cocktail’s invention is because the Manhattan Club was actually located in the Jerome family mansion from 1899 until 1966. The mansion was Jennie’s childhood home and was built by her semi-famous father, the flamboyant financier Leonard Jerome (1817-1891). Nonetheless, it’s a fascinating piece of fiction that may simply have arisen as a means of a still-then insecure America trying to legitimize itself to the rest of the world–and what better way to do so than to highlight America’s profound connection to producing one of England’s greatest and most respected political figures.
Aside from it’s problematic origin story, the beauty of a Manhattan is its utter simplicity. Just three ingredients. No mixer. No fuss. No sweet stuff. All alcohol. Such simplicity, however, does give the bourbon centerstage, so this is not the time to skimp on quality. I like Maker’s Mark, Knob Creek, or Jefferson, as they impart an irresistible smoothness with just a hint of caramel sweetness. Manhattan aficionados will insist on using rye whiskey over bourbon, which I salute and deeply respect, but it’s just not for me as rye always leaves a lingering, unpleasant medicinal aftertaste that I cannot get past.
Here in Pennsylvania, all hard liquor sales are tightly controlled and restricted to state-run retail stores. Therefore, I’ve found it difficult to find premium vermouths, especially here in my rural county, so I’ve had to make-do with Martini and Rossi brand sweet vermouth, which I find quite satisfactory. Vermouth is actually an herb-infused, fortified wine, so it’s recommended that you store it in the in the refrigerator to extend its shelf.
Manhattan cocktail recipe
Yields two drinks
INGREDIENTS
4 ounces bourbon
2 ounces sweet vermouth
4 dashes Angostura bitters
bourbon-soaked cherries for garnish*
* Fill a mason jar with frozen sweet cherries. Add enough bourbon to cover and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract if you’re feeling fancy. Store in refrigerator & use as needed. Keeps for many months!
PREPARATION
Fill two coupe glasses with ice and then fill with water. Let sit while you make the cocktails
Add ingredients to a small cocktail pitcher or shaker. Fill with ice. Stir until well chilled–at least 30 seconds.
Empty ice and water from coupe glasses. Using a strainer, pour stirred cocktail into freshly chilled glasses
Garnish with cherries. I usually like three on a cocktail skewer.
BEST Fall Cocktails Ever!
#1 The Nor’easter
As only a recent invention of cocktail genius, the Nor’easter has no storied history like the Manhattan, and it has yet to become a permanent fixture on cocktail menus. Give it time, however, as this bracing concoction of bourbon, lime juice, maple syrup, and ginger beer is fully deserving of all the attention its namesake north Atlantic storm so forcefully commands every winter!
First concocted by restaurateur and chef, Sean Josephs, for his now-closed Flat Iron District barbeque restaurant, Maysville, the recipe first appeared on the New York Times Cooking website around 2017. In fact, if you scroll through the reviews on the original recipe post (click here), you can see the gushingly enthusiastic review I submitted a year ago (I may or may not have imbibed a few Nor’easters when I wrote the review).
Ever since I first decided to give this cocktail a try, I’ve been forever hooked! It’s like a more sophisticated whisky sour or a more autumnal Moscow mule–a zingy, sweet and sour nectar of bourbon, lime juice, and maple syrup, topped off with the fizzy, spicy bite of ginger beer. It is quite simply the most supremely fantastic of all seasonal fall cocktails! I hope you give it a whirl.
Stir in a counter-clockwise direction for extra authenticity! The resulting cocktail will pack the satisfying wallop of a Nor’easter winter storm, albeit slightly tempered by the autumnal sweetness of maple syrup.
(Photo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nor%27easter)
The Nor’easter Cocktail Recipe
Yields two drinks
INGREDIENTS
1 ounce fresh lime juice (juice from approximately one and a half limes)
4 ounces bourbon (because there are a lot of components to this drink, cheaper bourbon like Evan Williams works well here)
1 ounce maple syrup
2 ounces cold ginger beer (I prefer Fever Tree brand as it has a very peppery, ginger punch, but Gosling’s will do in a pinch)
Lime wheel slices
PREPARATION
In a metal or glass cocktail shaker, combine the lime juice, bourbon, and maple syrup. If possible, chill f in the refrigerator or freezer until very cold.
Fill two rocks glasses with ice cubes. Evenly pour bourbon mixture into both glasses. Tope off with ginger beer. Stir until well chilled and garnish each glass with a lime wheel.
ALL TEXT AND PHOTOS BY STACEY UNLESS OTHERWISE INDICATED.
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