A Perfect Fall/Thanksgiving Cocktail Recipe

If you read last week's lately post, I shared a cocktail recipe I had come across and mentioned that I wanted to try it out. Well, I did try it, and ended up not liking it (it had gin it in, which is typically what I drink, but it was not a good mix!). However, I was not going to give up! I quickly took to Pinterest and after reading about 50 cocktail recipes, I finally came up with something that I thought tasted really good! 

I am just learning this myself, but I think the hardest part of entertaining is when you have a smaller group of people over. I always find myself trying to please everyone, whereas, if I have a larger group over, it's just less stressful all around. In this case, I was having everyone over for dinner (just take out pizzas) and drinks before we had a triple date to Kennywood's Fright Night. 

I'm going to go on a quick tangent away from cocktails to tell my Pittsburgh readers to avoid Kennywood at all costs. I grew up going there and it holds so many great memories for me, so it really pains me to say that. I had gone a few years ago with friends and it was so crowded that all we rode the entire day was the merry go round. This time, we were going for the novelty of Halloween, but we were there for a few hours and did two things... 90% of our time was spent waiting in line. We all made the best of it because we always have fun when we are all together, but it was still frustrating! 

Anyway, back to the cocktail! This is what you will need (this is just my adaptation of a bunch of Pinterest recipes-- nothing formal and you can adapt to your tastes and preferences!). 

Bourbon (I like Bulliet and Maker's Mark)

Lemon Juice

Apple Cider (Trader Joe's Honeycrisp is good!)

Ginger Beer (Fever Tree is my favorite, TJ's is a close second)

1 Apple 

Cinnamon Sticks 

Rosemary Sprigs

Pour 1 shot of bourbon, a half shot of lemon juice, and 5 oz. of cider over ice in a cocktail shaker. Drop in a cinnamon stick for flavor. Shake until cold. Add rosemary sprig and an apple slice as garnish and pour into glass over ice. Top off with ginger beer. 

It has a really great, tart flavor and is not too sweet. I'm not a huge bourbon fan and don't drink it too often, bu even I enjoyed this. I think it would be great for a large party because you could turn it into a sangria and let the rosemary, cinnamon and apples soak in the mixture for a while and then add in the ginger beer right before your guests arrive! Do you have a favorite fall cocktail? I'd love to know!