It’s that time of year, everyone! Usually by this time I have my whole Thanksgiving menu completely mapped out, including a carefully curated drinking plan that is designed to help me get through all my holiday obligations. This election year in particular, I know that many of you are going to be dealing with people of different generations patiently explaining to you why your choice of candidate is THE WRONG ONE, and how you are personally contributing to the fiery demise of our beloved country. This deceptively strong cocktail* is for you.
I’ve had to start getting creative while experimenting with cocktails because hey, being original is hard, people! Sometimes I have to dig around in my pantry to find something of interest to play around with. Sometimes I also drink things that don’t sound like a good idea but might be worth a shot. I have high standards for what I publish, but I will make and drink terrible things in the name of my craft.
So now we have this drink! I pulled the pumpkin pie spice off the rack for this and added a few shakes to the cocktail shaker. To be honest, the spice didn’t dissolve as well as I’d hoped, and the first round I made was a bit grainy. So for the second round I shook it a little longer, and double strained with a fine mesh strainer. There was still a little graininess but nothing more than a cup of chai tea.
A note about supplies - I have a larger fine mesh strainer, but when I make drinks I often use a small tea strainer as a quick fix without adding too much to the dirty dish pile.
Spiced Maple Bourbon Cocktail
2oz bourbon
1oz maple syrup
1 large dash pumpkin pie spice
Soda water
Add bourbon, maple syrup, and pumpkin pie spice to a shaker with ice and shake until cold. Double strain into a rocks glass with ice, and top with soda water to taste. Enjoy while listening to your extended family explain to you why your presidential choice is the Antichrist.
*The fact that this drink is orange is in no way an implicit endorsement of Donald Trump. I’m with bourbon.