As the days start getting shorter, and the weather starts turning chilly, you know fall has arrived. A lot of get-togethers and gatherings are planned during this time. This is the perfect time to catch up with your friends and family before the holiday season sets in and everyone goes away on their little escapades.
You can tell fall has arrived when the weather starts turning colder and leaves start turning yellow. In the US, the temperature averages 53.9°F (12.2°C) during the fall season, and you can track the weather to predict the arrival of the fall. Advanced weather forecast websites like Tomorrow.io have dedicated weather radars like New York City radar, Cincinnati radar and more, to predict the exact arrival time of the fall season in your region.
Once you know when fall is hitting up your area, you can start prepping for the ultimate party for your folks. While food and desserts are good and all, what makes a party happening are the drinks being served. Whether you are planning a Thanksgiving dinner or Halloween party, good cocktails will always liven it up. Here are some of the best fall-inspired cocktails for you to try.
Pumpkin Pie Sangria
Nothing screams fall louder than a good pumpkin pie! What if we were to tell you that you can enjoy a pumpkin pie in the form of a boozy cocktail? That’s precisely what Pumpkin Pie Sangria is.
You’ll need one bottle each of chilled white wine and sparkling cider. Apart from that, you need half a cup of pumpkin pie vodka, one chopped pear, one chopped apple, a quarter cup sugar, half tablespoon pumpkin spice, and cinnamon sticks for garnish.
Combine sugar and pumpkin spice on a small plate, rim your glasses with a piece of apple and dip them into the mixture. In a large pitcher, combine all of your remaining ingredients except cinnamon sticks, and mix well. Serve the Sangria in your rimmed glasses with cinnamon sticks as garnish.
Apple Cider Sangria
Apple Cider is a quintessential fall ingredient that can be turned into a fantastic fall-inspired Sangria. This delicious and beautiful orange fall drink is a spiced punch made with brandy, apple cider, and a dash of prosecco. From the color to flavors like fresh lemon, ginger, and orange bitters, this Sangria represents the fall season the best.
To create this fantastic cocktail, you’ll need two and a half cups of apple cider, three-quarter cups of brandy, and a half cup of orange juice. Apart from that, a quarter cup of lemon juice, thinly sliced fresh ginger, two teaspoons of orange bitter, four thinly sliced clementines, two very thinly sliced apples, and a bottle of Prosecco or any other dry sparkling wine.
Stir the brandy, cider, lemon juice, clementine juice, bitters, and ginger together in a large pitcher. Add sliced clementine and apples, and refrigerate for a day for the flavors to meld together. Before serving it cold over ice, add a generous splash of Prosecco, depending on how boozy you want the Sangria to be.
Fall Punch
It’s all in the name. The Fall Punch is a festive, spiced cocktail that brings together the goodness of sweet pears and rum in a drink that you can enjoy all through the fall and winter. What’s even better is that the cocktail is straightforward to make and takes only five minutes.
To make this nectar-like cocktail, you’ll need simple ingredients. These include a liter of pear nectar, two cups of spiced rum, one cup of fresh lemon juice, one tablespoon bitters, two pints of ginger beer, and thinly sliced pears.
Add and mix pear nectar, lemon juice, spiced rum, and bitters in a large pitcher. Once these are blended well, stir in the ginger beer. Put pear slices in your glasses and fill them with crushed ice. Pour the punch over the ice before serving it cold.
Cider Hot Toddy
How does a combination of warm apple cider, whiskey, and the warm goodness of cinnamon sound to you during a cold fall day? It’s all that you imagine and more. The Cider Hot Toddy is a perfect drink to warm your guests up on a cold winter night.
All you need are simple ingredients like three cups apple cider, one cup water, a lemon, three-quarter cup sugar, two cups whiskey, and cinnamon sticks. In a saucepan, bring the cider, water, lemon, and sugar to a simmer on medium heat while stirring till the sugar dissolves. After that, take the saucepan off the heat and stir in the whiskey; serve in your favorite glasses with cinnamon sticks as garnish.
Spiced Mexican Hot Chocolate
It wouldn’t be cold weather without a cup of hot chocolate in front of a crackling fireplace. The Spiced Mexican Hot Chocolate takes your regular cup of cocoa several notches above with the goodness of cinnamon sticks and bourbon. This winter cocktail is sure to cheer up anyone during a dull and dark fall day.
Gather four cups of whole milk, two cups of half-and-half, half cup of dulce de leche, two cinnamon sticks, around 300g 70% dark chocolate, two teaspoons vanilla extract, a big pinch of kosher sale and half a cup of bourbon.
Whisk milk, half-and-half, and dulce de leche with cinnamon sticks in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a simmer over medium heat while stirring in between. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it rest for 10 minutes. Simmer it over medium heat once again and gradually whisk in finely chopped dark chocolate until it’s melted and achieves a smooth consistency.
Remove from the heat and pour vanilla extract, kosher salt, and bourbon. Get rid of the cinnamon sticks in the mixture and serve warm in glasses of your choice.
Pick any of the above five cocktails for your next fall shindig, and you’re guaranteed to become a hit among your peers and family. Moreover, there is no hard and fast rule for these cocktails, and you can always modify the recipe to come up with a better implementation of the same.
