These rye cocktails are perfect for Autumn

With fall fast approaching, it’s time to put away the crisp, refreshing cocktails you’ve been turning to and crack open some brown booze!

We’ve rounded up some of our favorite cocktails featuring rye whiskey, an often overlooked brown spirit.

Rye’s peppery bite and layers of spice make it a prime mixer, especially in cooler months when its warmth gives heft to even cold cocktails.

If you haven’t had rye in a while (or ever) we encourage you to give these recipes a go with our suggested brands or any of your standby favorites.

The Sagamore Apple Butter

INGREDIENTS

• 1.5 oz. Sagamore Spirit Signature Rye Whiskey
• 4 oz cinnamon apple spice tea
• .5 oz lemon juice
• .75 oz honey
• Unsalted butter for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Steep tea bag in hot water according to boxed instructions.
2. Add Sagamore Spirit Signature Rye Whiskey, lemon juice and honey. Stir until combined.
3. Garnish with one tablespoon butter to melt on top.

Blueberry maple Sazerac

This recipe comes from SimpleSeasonal.com and it is delicious.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 C blueberries
• 2 oz Dad’s Hat Rye whiskey
• Rinse of Vieux Carré absinthe
• 1/2 tsp maple syrup aged in rye whiskey barrels
• 5 dashes Peychaud’s bitters
• Twist of lemon

DIRECTIONS

1. Rinse the inside of a glass with absinthe by putting a small amount in and rolling the glass around in your hands. Pour the rest back in the bottle or discard.
2. In a mixing tin, muddle the blueberries until all the juice has been released.
3. Fill the tin halfway with ice
4. Add the whiskey
5. Add the maple syrup
6. Add the 5 dashes of Peychaud’s
7. Using a bar spoon, stir the ingredients until well mixed
8. Strain into a glass using both a Hawthorne and a small mesh strainer in order to catch all of the blueberry pulp.
9. Squeeze a lemon zest over the glass to release the oils
10. Garnish with a lemon twist

Rye Hot Toddy

INGREDIENTS

• 1.5 oz of your favorite rye whiskey
• 3 oz boiling water
• .5 oz lemon juice
• .75 oz honey simple syrup
• Half a cinnamon stick
• Lemon wedge for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Boil the water with the cinnamon stick in it
2. Pour boiling water, rye whiskey, lemon juice and honey syrup into a mug
3. Mix and garnish with lemon wedge

BATCHABLE

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Bottle of your favorite rye whiskey
• 50 oz Boiling water
• 8.5 oz Lemon Juice
• 12.75 oz Honey Simple Syrup
• Cinnamon Sticks
• Lemon Wedges for Garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Boil the water with the cinnamon stick in it
2. Pour boiling water, rye whiskey, lemon juice and honey syrup into a mug
3. Mix and garnish with lemon wedge

Sagamore Hot Cider

INGREDIENTS

• 2 oz Sagamore Spirit Rye Whiskey
• 4 oz Apple Cider
• .5 oz Lime Juice
• Simple Syrup to taste
• Cinnamon Sticks & Apple for Garnish
• Can also be served cold

DIRECTIONS

1. Add apple cider, lime juice, simple syrup, and cinnamon stick to a small pot.
2. Bring to a gentle boil for 10 minutes.
3. Remove from heat, add whiskey and stir to mix.
4. Strain into your favorite mugs.
5. Garnish with apple slices and a dash of cinnamon.

BATCHABLE

INGREDIENTS

• 1 Bottle of Sagamore Spirit Rye Whiskey
• 50 oz of Apple Cider
• 6.5 oz of Lime Juice
• Cinnamon Stick for Garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Add apple cider, lime juice, and cinnamon stick to a small pot.
2. Bring to a gentle boil for 10 minutes.
3. Remove from heat, add whiskey and stir to mix.
4. Strain into your favorite mugs.
5. Garnish with apple slices and a dash of cinnamon.

Fig old fashioned

INGREDIENTS

• 2 oz. of your favorite rye whiskey
• .5 oz dark brown sugar syrup*
• 2 dashes Sycophant bitters (orange and fig bitters)
• 1 dash Angostura bitters
• Fig for garnish

DIRECTIONS

1. Add all ingredients into a mixing glass.
2. Add ice and stir until cold.
3. Strain into a coupe glass and garnish.
   *Dark Brown Sugar Syrup: Mix one cup each of water and sugar. Cook on med-low heat until sugar is dissolved and reduce to a simmer for 10-minutes. Cool and store in refrigerator. Yields 1 ½ cups.

More delicious cocktail ideas

• Cocktails that taste like a vacation in a glass
• Sagamore Spirit rye cocktail recipes
• These boozy root beer floats are for adults only
• The most popular beer in every state

Constance Brinkley-Badgett

Constance Brinkley-Badgett is MediaFeed’s executive editor. She has more than 20 years of experience in digital, broadcast and print journalism, as well as several years of agency experience in content marketing. She has served as a digital producer at NBC Nightly News, Senior Producer at CNBC, Managing Editor at ICF Next, and as a tax reporter at Bloomberg BNA.

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