The recipe for a festive fall brew

Bourbon or spiced dark rum, lemon juice, honey simple syrup and hard apple cider combine for the perfect fall brew. CONTRIBUTED

Bourbon or spiced dark rum, lemon juice, honey simple syrup and hard apple cider combine for the perfect fall brew. CONTRIBUTED

It’s that time of year again. Call it what you want: sweater weather, forced-family-photo season...

It’s the perfect occasion to zip up your boots, take in fall’s beauty outdoors, eat apple fritters and explore some of the beautiful farmlands across Southwest Ohio. Personally, I have little-to-no interest in dressing in coordinated outfits or taking a hayride through a field. My interest lies mainly in drinking spiked cider.

Recently, I went to a pumpkin patch with my sister so she could load up on gourds and decorative cornstalks. I was on the hunt for the perfect fall cider. It had to be just right, not too sweet, not too dry. My sister had some success, $50 worth of fall decor, but I came up empty-handed and had to take matters into my own hands.

When I got home I mixed up what I consider to be the perfect Festive Fall cocktail:

FESTIVE FALL BREW

INGREDIENTS

2 oz. bourbon or spiced dark rum

½ oz. lemon juice

¾ oz. honey simple syrup*

3 oz. hard apple cider

DIRECTIONS

I chose dark rum for my concoction, but bourbon would be delicious, too. Mix together the liquor, lemon juice and honey simple syrup in a cocktail tin. Add ice and shake. Pour over crushed ice and top with the hard apple cider. Garnish with an apple slice, a cinnamon stick, or both.

If you’re feeling extra fancy, (which for me is always) mix together a bit of cinnamon and sugar on a small plate. Before you pour your drink into the glass, take a lemon wedge across the rim of your glass and dip the rim in the mixture. You’ll have a perfectly sugary and spicy glass and you’ll get a bit of extra flavor with every sip, or slurp! Happy Fall!

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