1 cup apple cider
⅛ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
3 ounces vodka
Dash chocolate bitters
Dash orange bitters
6 to 10 granules kosher salt
Ice cubes
In a saucepan over low, simmer the cider and pumpkin pie spice until thick and reduced to 2 tablespoons, 10 to 15 minutes. Cool completely, then pour into a cocktail shaker (use a silicone spatula to scrape the pan to get all of the syrup). Add the bourbon or vodka, chocolate bitters, orange bitters and salt. Shake with ice cubes. Strain into a coupe.
Spiced Apple Cocktail
Slices of fresh apple add both flavorful juice and gentle sweetness to this bourbon-based cocktail. Use apples with high acidity and lots of flavor, such as Honeycrisp or Macoun. Licor 43 is a Spanish liqueur with vanilla notes, while Ancho Reyes has mild chili heat. The combination creates a sweet, savory and gently spicy cocktail.
2 large, thin slices fresh apple
¼ ounce agave or simple syrup
2 ounces bourbon
¼ ounce Licor 43
¼ ounce Ancho Reyes
Dash orange bitters
6 to 10 granules kosher salt
Ice, cubes and crushed
In a stirring glass, aggressively muddle the apple slices and syrup. Add the bourbon, Licor 43, Ancho Reyes, bitters and salt. Stir with ice cubes, then double strain into a coupe filled halfway with crushed ice.
Buttered Rum
Traditionally, a Buttered Rum is a warm cocktail in which a pat of butter is melted into a heated blend of rum, apple cider and spices. To give this wonderful flavor combination year-round appeal, I borrowed a technique often used with whiskey — fat washing. This involves adding a flavorful fatty ingredient, such as bacon or butter, to a liquor. After a brief infusion, it is chilled so the fat is easily strained out, leaving only its flavor behind. In this case, the result is buttery-rich rum, the perfect foil for bright hard apple cider.