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Autumn is here, and that means this apple butter old fashioned needs to be on your Sunday to-do list.
If there was ever a fall cocktail to love, this has got to be it. It’s loaded with all things warm and cozy…hello to homemade apple butter, cider, lemon, orange bitters, bourbon, and ginger beer for topping. This has been my go-drink now for the past couple weeks. I first made it when my brother was home last week. My family seems to wander on over to my house come the five o’clock hour, and they somehow always talk me into making them drinks.
Granted it’s not that hard to talk me into it, one, because I don’t use the word no often enough when it comes to making things for them, and two, because I actually love making drinks. Something about making drinks is so fun and just puts me in a good mood…
Anyway, I was in the middle working on another recipe when my brother showed up, so I decided to use everything that I had out on the counter. Surprisingly, everything I had out happened to make a great cocktail.
I grabbed a mason jar and added the apple cider, lemon juice, orange bitters (ok these were not on the counter, but they were an easy grab from the pantry), apple butter, and bourbon (honestly, I had just been doing some fall baking with it!). I shook everything up (and no, I don’t own a cocktail shaker, so mason jars for the win). Poured it over ice and topped it off with just a little ginger beer because I kind of just top off all cocktails with ginger beer.
The verdict? SO GOOD. Actually, he said I should really consider being a bar tender…ahh yeah, no thanks.
I guess that’s a compliment though, and I have to say, the drink was so good. It has all the right amounts of autumn flavor, but it’s not over powering in any way.
The bourbon and apple butter go hand in hand, and using apple butter in cocktails is an easy way to add flavor and sweetness without having to add a simple syrup.
Bottom line? This probably needs to be your drink of fall, and you probably need to make it once…or twice…or you know, how ever many times you need to this weekend. Obviously.
Apple Butter Old Fashioned
Servings: 1 drink
Calories Per Serving: 600 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- coarse sugar, for the rim (optional)
- 1/4 cup apple cider
- juice from 1/2 a lemon
- dash of orange bitters
- 1 tablespoon apple butter
- 2 ounces bourbon
- ginger beer or ginger kombucha, for topping (optional)
- thinly sliced apples and cinnamon, for garnish
Instructions
- 1. If desired, rim your glass with coarse sugar.2. In a cocktail shaker, combine the apple cider, lemon juice, orange bitters, apple butter and bourbon. Shake to combine.3. Strain into your prepared glass filled with ice. If desired top with ginger beer. Garnish with cinnamon and apples. DRINK!
ps. prepare to see lots of smoke leading up to Halloween. Loving the spookiness. <–and there’s the major dork in me coming out. Don’t even care. Love this time of year!
You should have a tic toc account so you can share with the world your amazing tasting drinks! Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Katie!! I have one:)
Made it. Slurped it. Loved it! Perfect for a crisp fall evening…or afternoon…or…any time. Thank you!
Hi Patty,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! xx
This is my favorite fall cocktail! I discovered the recipe last fall and made it so much! It’s delicious and
encompasses the fall season perfectly. It’s just perfect and a total winner! Thank you for everything you do and sharing your gift with all of us!
Hi Lauren,
Happy Sunday!! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks a lot for making it! xT
This is honestly the perfect fall cocktail. We made it many times last fall and think about it frequently. I’m not really a bourbon fan, so I use ginger liqueur instead but my husband uses bourbon in his. We made it many times last fall and even took a huge pitcher of it to Friendsgiving, where it disappeared very quickly!
When making it as a pitcher, we left out the alcohol and offered people a selection of alcohol options (bourbon, ginger liqueur, cinnamon whisky, etc) so they could choose what to add (if anything) and how strong they wanted it. Make sure you use a good quality ginger beer to keep the cocktail from being too sweet (my favorites are Q brand and Fever Tree).
Hey AJ,
Fantastic!! Thanks a lot for trying this recipe out and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! xxT
Is there a way to make this non-alcoholic?
Hi Teral,
I would skip the alcohol and use more apple cider or kombucha in its place. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Love this recipe! I am also wondering about how long it would last once mixed. Trying to figure out if I can make this in bottles for gifts! Thank you.
Thank you so much Dave! I am really glad this turned out so well for you! xTieghan
Yum!!!! I am wanting to make this the signature cocktail for Thanksgiving!! If I were to make a premix without the alcohol before hand, how many days do you think it would last in the fridge. I’m traveling(by car) but don’t want to bring everything to their house.
Thank you!!
I am deeply disappointed that this isn’t called an old fallshioned.
Haha that is too good! The next one I should do that! xTieghan
We made these tonight and they are AMAZING! New favorite cocktail and the perfect fall flavors. We used diet ginger ale for the splash of soda since that’s what we already had. Thank you so much for this recipe, we will definitely make them again!
That is so amazing to hear! Thank you for trying this recipe, Michelle! xTieghan
Just made this and didn’t realize what I had was pumpkin butter and not apple butter honestly it is SO good. This is the perfect fall cocktail and I can’t wait to try it how it’s supposed to be with apple butter! But also 10/10 with pumpkin!!
I am so happy this turned out so well for you, Eliza! Thank you for trying this! xTieghan
Wanting to try this for a couples’ game night this Fall! Do you think it’d work to make a big batch all the way through to straining and leaving in a pitcher possibly? Thanks so much!
Hey Cara,
Yes, that will work! Let me know if you have other questions. Hope you love the recipe. Thank you! xTieghan
I love a plain ol’ old fashioned. It maybe is my favorite cocktail. I tried this recipe and the apple cider vinegar is very forward in this recipe, especially acidic with the addition of the lemon juice. Next time I will try it without any ACV or lemon juice with the apple butter in place of the usual sugar in the drink. Regardless, it is beautiful, just a bit too acidic for my taste.
Thank you so much Alicia! If there is anything I can do to help, please let me know! xTieghan
FYI, it calls for apple CIDER, not apple cider vinegar.
Also made with pumpkin butter because that’s what I had on hand. Great cocktail! I don’t usually drink bourbon, but this was great and I’ll definitely make it again!
Hey Amanda,
Thank you so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was a winner! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! xx
this was my go-to fall/winter signature cocktail with the substitutions as printed in the Philadelphia Inquirer: 1 teaspoon of orange zest and 2 tablespoons of orange juice instead of the lemon juice, plus 1 teaspoon of balsamic vinegar.
thank you Tieghan!!!
Thank you so much Eileen! So glad you have been loving this recipe! xTieghan
What is that purple sprig you have used for garnish? There is no mention of it in the recipe.
Hi Sabina! That is just a wild flower I picked from the yard. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you!! xTieghan
Hey HBH,
Great drink, I love the use of homemade apple butter.
You know, I make my own apple butter at home too!
But my recipe is a little different than yours.
Oh, you would like to know what I put in it?
I’m glad you asked.
You see, you are the apple of my eye, so I like to put just a lil bit of you in there, if ya know what I mean ;).
Haha, jk, ?
Anyways, have a good day.
Yours truly,
Agnes the Apple Butter Babymomma
I am so glad you like this Agnes! Thank you! xTieghan