It was the spice of kings and queens, and merchants traveled the world to find it for their lords and ladies. While times have changed a little bit since then, cinnamon is still an incredibly important ingredient in food and drink the world over. It gives spice to the spiceless, backbone to the spineless, character to…well, you get it.
Cinnamon also happens to be one of our favorite wintertime cocktail flavors, as its composition and flavor profile go incredibly well with a wide range of other flavors. To celebrate that, we’ve collected a few cinnamon cocktails for you to try this winter.
If that isn’t enough for you, keep this in mind: not only does cinnamon provide great flavor to cocktail, but it also has a number of beneficial health properties—from being a great source of antioxidants to being said to help fight diabetes to helping protect dental health. While health benefits of any fruit, vegetable, or other ingestible may to some extent always be contested, it’s nice knowing that you can be benefitting your health while drinking the cinnamon cocktails we’ve collected below.
Cruzan Spiced Apple Cider
- 1 1/2 parts Cruzan Aged Dark Rum
- 1 part Simple Syrup
- 3/4 parts fresh Lemon Juice
- 1 part Cider
- Cinnamon
- Allspice
Method: Combine ingredients in a glass and serve over ice. Garnish with freshly grated cinnamon and allspice.
Eggless Egg Nog
(Created by Harold’s Cabin, Charleston, SC)
- 1.5 oz of bourbon
- .5 oz dark rum
- 2 scoop of vanilla ice cream
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg (plus pinch to garnish).
Method: Add bourbon, rum, ice cream, cinnamon and nutmeg to shaker. Shake vigorously for 10 seconds. Strain into chilled Coupe. Garnish with remaining nutmeg.
Casa Hot Chocolate
- 1.5 oz. Casamigos Reposado
- 4 oz. Hot Chocolate Mix
- .5 oz. Agave Nectar
- .25 oz. Almond Liqueur Pinch of Cinnamon
Method: Combine Casamigos, agave nectar, almond liqueur, and cinnamon into mug. Top with hot chocolate mix and stir. Garnish with 2 large roasted marshmallows and graham cracker square.
Cinnamon Tequila Toddy
- 1 ½ parts Hornitos Black Barrel Tequila
- 5 parts hot water
- ¾ part cinnamon bark syrup
- ¼ part honey
- ¼ part fresh lemon juice
- 3 dashes vanilla bitters
- Cinnamon sticks
Method: Combine equal parts sugar and water and 3 cinnamon sticks in a saucepan and bring to a boil to create cinnamon bark syrup. Remove cinnamon sticks from the mixture and combine the remainder of the ingredients in a coffee glass. Stir and garnish with a cinnamon stick.
Doc Holliday Grog
(Tales of the Toddy 2016 winning recipe created by Chris Hannah of French 75 Bar & Christine Jeanine Nielsen of Angeline and Pearl Wine Co., New Orleans)
- 1.75 oz Toasted Coconut-infused High West Double Rye!
- 5 oz Three Brothers Milk syrup
- 5 oz Heavy Cream
- Toasted, grated coconut and grated Cinnamon
Method: Shake ingredients w/ ice, strain over ice and garnish w/ coconut and cinnamon.
Toasted Coconut infused High West Double Rye!: 1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, 2 oz Raw Cane Sugar (Three Brothers) mixed together and placed on a sheet pan. Sit in an oven at 400 until toasty brown. Take toasted coconut and sugar from the oven and add to a glass jar large enough for it and the whiskey. Let sit for a couple hours and strain.
Milk Syrup: 1/2 cup Milk w/ half cup Raw Cane Sugar and one cinnamon stick. Break cinnamon stick and add to the milk and sugar in a saucepan and heat, stir until sugar is dissolved.
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