What makes a cocktail taste like fall
Fall cocktails trade summer's bright citrus for warmer, deeper flavors: apple and pear, maple and honey, warm spices like cinnamon and clove, and richer bases like bourbon, dark rum, and amaro. They're a little more spirit-forward and a lot cozier — drinks for a cool evening rather than a hot afternoon.
Seasonal produce does a lot of the work. Apple cider, cranberries, ginger, and fresh rosemary or sage turn a standard drink into an autumn one with almost no effort.
Fall cocktails by flavor
- Apple & cider: apple cider mule, a bourbon-cider highball, or a spiced-cider punch
- Maple & spice: maple old fashioned, a cinnamon whiskey sour, or a spiced pear martini
- Warm & boozy: hot toddy, spiked chai, or a Manhattan for the first truly cold night
- Cranberry & citrus: a cranberry mule or a bourbon-orange sour to bridge into the holidays
Fall cocktails by spirit
- Bourbon / whiskey: the workhorse of fall — old fashioned, whiskey sour, cider highball, or a hot toddy
- Dark rum: a spiced-cider punch, a hot buttered rum, or a maple daiquiri
- Amaro & vermouth: a Manhattan, a boulevardier, or an amaro-and-soda for something bittersweet
- Vodka: an apple-cider mule or a spiced-pear martini when you want a lighter base
Cozy make-ahead drinks for fall gatherings
Fall is game-day and dinner-party season, so batch drinks earn their keep: a slow-cooker of spiced cider punch, a pitcher of apple-cider mules, or a big-batch boulevardier lets you host without mixing all night. Warm drinks especially love a low, slow pot you can ladle from.
Not sure what to build with your bottles? Tell MixSurprise what you have and it will suggest a cozy fall cocktail.