Applejack Rabbit Cocktail

With Thanksgiving only a few weeks away and us being right in the thick of fall, I’m all about the fall-themed cocktails. What makes a fall-themed cocktail? For me, it’s those drinks that are made with Applejack or bourbon; cocktails that have a heartier flavor and are usually served up as opposed to on the rocks.

I made a Maple Leaf Cocktail a few weeks ago because it was made with bourbon and maple syrup, two things that scream fall to me. This recipe is similar because it also has maple syrup in it, but instead of bourbon, the drink calls for Applejack. Applejack is an apple brandy that’s blended with neutral spirits like whiskey and bourbon. But where other apple flavored liquors use flavored syrups, Laird’s uses real, whole apples to give the liquor its distinct apple flavor. It’s a delicious liquor that’s perfect for fall cocktails like this one and many others on my site.

While the Applejack kick starts that delectable fall taste, it’s really the maple syrup that takes it into the red zone. Now, I know maple syrup may seem like an odd choice for a cocktail, but if you think about it, it’s just a different type of sweetener. A lot of cocktails, both vintage and modern, call for sweeteners like grenadine or simple syrup. If you go back even further to the days of Harry Craddock and David Embury, a couple of the original mixologists, gomme syrup was actually the sweetener of choice. So, it only makes sense that if you want to give a cocktail an autumn flavor, you’d use a sweetener that’s a little more complex, a sweetener like maple syrup.

The cocktail was first published in 1930 in Harry Craddock’s Savoy Cocktail Book, but was probably created before.  His version is very different from David Embury’s more popular choice. Craddock’s calls for almost equal parts lemon and orange juice, Applejack and maple syrup. It sounds too sweet, too tart, too… well, just too. But then David Embury published his version in the popular Art of Mixing Drinks which came out in 1948. Embury’s version is definitely more palatable because it cuts everything except the Applejack in half, making for a much more enjoyable drink.

So, if you’re looking for a cocktail that really is perfect for a fall night, your upcoming Thanksgiving feast or a holiday party, this is the one. And if you’re still concerned about a cocktail made with maple syrup, don’t be; as Embury writes, “Don’t shy away from it. It’s not half bad.”

Applejack Rabbit Cocktail (David Embury’s version)

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 oz. Applejack
• 1/2 oz. orange juice
• 1/2 oz. lemon juice
• 1/2 oz. maple syrup

Directions:

1. Pour all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake vigorously for a minute. Strain into a cocktail glass and serve.