Skip to main content

Get ready for Labor Day weekend with these crowd-pleasing whiskey cocktails

Three whiskey cocktails, from an alternative spritz to a cherry sour

autumn The White Mountain
The White Mountain Area Claire Gentile/Getty Images

As Labor Day weekend marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall, now is the time to get out your darker spirits. Many people like to enjoy lighter drinks in the summertime, with plenty of spritzes and bubbly concoctions. And for winter, you’ll want something hearty and warming. But coming into this transition period, it’s a good excuse to get a bit experimental with your cocktails.

Why not keep the last of the summer vibes with a spritz, but embrace the incoming fall by making it a bourbon spritz rather than an Aperol one? And now is a great time to get out your whiskeys and to try out drinks like a cherry sour or a bourbon Gold Rush.

Below we’ve got three whiskey cocktails perfect for fall, from the brands Maker’s Mark, Jos. A. Magnus & Co., and Fox & Oden.

Bourbon Spritz

Maker’s Mark

Ingredients:

  • 1 part Maker’s Mark Bourbon
  • 1 part Aperol aperitif
  • ¾ part of freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • Splash of simply Syrup
  • Prosecco
  • Orange Peel

Method:

Fill a wine glass with ice and layer in Maker’s Mark, Aperol, lemon juice and syrup. Top with Prosecco and garnish with an orange peel.

Cherry Whiskey Sour

Fox & Oden

Ingredients:

Method:

Combine Fox & Oden bourbon, lemon juice, simple syrup, and cherry juice in a cocktail shaker with 5-6 cubes of ice. Shake well until combined. Strain out the ice and return the cocktail to the cocktail shaker without ice. Add egg white and shake as vigorously as possible for an entire minute to build foam. Pour slowly into a coupe glass.

Honey Bourbon Gold Rush

Jos. A. Magnus & Co.

Ingredients:

Method:

Stir honey and water in a cocktail shaker until the honey is dissolved. Add bourbon and lemon juice. Shake and strain into a rocks glass filled with ice and garnish with a lemon slice and cherry.

Georgina Torbet
Georgina Torbet is a cocktail enthusiast based in Berlin, with an ever-growing gin collection and a love for trying out new…
Swap out your Campari and make an unexpected Cynar Negroni
This artichoke-based amaro has rich, caramel herbal flavors which add a great note to a negroni
Italian amari

As part of the ongoing celebration of Negroni Week, now is the perfect time to try out some negroni variations. With its simple formula of equal parts of gin, sweet vermouth, and Campari, the negroni is the ideal template for playing with different flavors and tweaking ingredients to make the drink your own.

The good news is that the negroni template is very flexible, so you can use just about any combination of spirit, sweeter aperitif, and bitter amaro and make something tasty. If you've got a well stocked bar and you feel like being brave, try out any combination and see how it goes.

Read more
Wyoming Whiskey released 2 new can’t-miss expressions
Wyoming Whiskey launched two limited-edition expressions
Wyoming Whiskey

If you’ve never tried any expressions from Wyoming Whiskey, what exactly are you waiting for? This popular distillery (Wyoming’s first legal distillery) has been crafting award-winning whiskeys since 2012.

If you haven’t yet tried any of its expressions, we suggest starting with its Small Batch Bourbon. But, once you’ve tried that, you’ll be ready for the brand’s two new releases. That’s right. Not one, but two new expressions. Recently, the distillery announced the launch of National Parks No. 4 and Old Faithful Straight Bourbon Whiskeys.
National Parks No. 4

Read more
These are our favorite Irish whiskey cocktails
You don't have to wait until March to make these cocktails
Tipperary

When St. Patrick’s Day rolls around, many drinkers grab for bottles of Tullamore D.E.W., Bushmills, and Jameson for shots, slow-sipping, and cocktails. And while that’s all well and good. You're missing out if you neglect these and other Irish whiskeys for the rest of the year. News flash: just like your favorite bourbon, rye, or single malt Scotch whisky, you can enjoy Irish whiskey (it’s spelled with the ‘e’ just like American whiskeys) all year long.

Before we get started, here's a little refresher on what makes an Irish whiskey. It might seem fairly straightforward, but just like with bourbon in the US, there are specific rules governing the spirit. According to the Irish Whiskey Act of 1980, there are a few basic requirements for a whiskey to be labeled as an “Irish whiskey”.

Read more