Aphrodite’s ambrosia : a spiced bourbon apple cider
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What is autumn without apple cider? As someone who grew up in upstate New York, the answer is that it isn’t autumn at all. I was recently able to visit my hometown during the fall for the first time in years, and it reinvigorated my love of all things apple - apples themselves, apple picking, and of course - boozy apple cider.
This cocktail is a perfect choice for any fall day, but it’s particularly great as a Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving offering. It’s beautiful, fresh, delicious, and easy to make!
Connection between Apples on Mt. Olympus
The Judgement of Paris
I wasn’t only inspired by crisp fall air for this one - I also can’t help but think of Aphrodite when I think of beautiful golden apples. Why is that? Aphrodite’s desperation for a particular apple caused the Trojan War!
The story goes that Zeus held a wedding celebration for the parents of Achilles, Thetis and Peleus. They did not invite Eris, goddess of discord, because well - it was a wedding celebration. Eris was not happy about this and showed up anyway - bearing a golden apple inscribed, “for the fairest one”. She offered it up to the group and discord ensued.
Three goddesses - Hera, Aphrodite, and Athena, all felt strongly that they were the fairest, and thus deserved the honor of having the golden apple. They asked Zeus to determine who should have it and Zeus was not interested in getting in the middle of things (though..I mean...he probably should have picked his wife!?).
Zeus brought in an impartial party - Paris, a young prince of Troy, to determine who should get the coveted apple. The three goddesses each offered him something to entice him to choose them.
Hera offered to make him king of Europe and Asia
Athena offered him wisdom and skill in war
Aphrodite offered the world's most beautiful woman, Helen of Sparta, who was married to King Menelaus.
Paris chose Aphrodite, and as a result Helen left Sparta to join him in Troy. Menelaus sailed to Troy to retrieve her - thus beginning the Trojan War.
Apples on Earth
Apple Picking
I don’t think I realized as a kid that apple picking was regional. It was a big tradition in my extended family to go every year and take a picture on the ladders - youngest cousins on top, oldest on the bottom. When I moved to Miami for college, Fall was always the time I missed home the most, and apple picking was always at the forefront of my mind.
In late September this year, we traveled back to New York for my sister’s wedding, which was the absolute best. The Sunday after was free and I was able to join a few family members together to go apple picking for the first time in years! It was so great. There was a also a distiller nearby who makes applejack and other spirits, so of course we stopped to get some. We picked up some fresh cider and I went home to dream up this drink.
That evening, a bunch of us gathered as kind of a last hurrah of the wedding weekend. We told stories about the wedding, laughed, and drank a bunch of bourbon cocktails. After going through a pitcher and a half I had to start making them one at a time because folks liked them so much. We kept going until we ran out of lemons, so I consider that a success!
The sparkling apple cider cocktail
Flavors
These flavors just work together so well. The spiced cider and bourbon are a natural fit - the honey vanilla fruity notes in bourbon aligning perfectly with fresh cider full of delicious warming spices. A little dash of ground cinnamon on top adds to the fall feelings. The lemon juice then jumps in and brightens everything to create a really balanced, crowd-pleasing drink.
Glitter
Why not up the wow factor with a bit of glitter? Adding just a bit of this brings an already beautiful cocktail to the next level, and really brings hope that
How to serve
One of the best things about this cocktail is how easy it is to throw in a pitcher and get on with your party! When batching, the most time consuming part of this cocktail is juicing enough lemons, but if you throw a podcast on or grab a friend to share in the juicing and you will be good to go. We hosted a Friendsgiving this past week and I set this up in a pitcher, threw a cute little container of ground cinnamon next to it and we were good to go! I do wish I had had time to dehydrate some cool apple slices as garnishes - next time! What would you garnish this cocktail with?
Other whiskey cocktail recipes
Japanese toki highball cocktail
Spiced Bourbon Apple Cider Cocktail Recipe
Aphrodite’s Ambrosia: a spiced bourbon apple cider
Ingredients
- 2 ounces bourbon
- 1 ½ to 2 ounces fresh spiced apple cider
- ¾ ounce fresh lemon juice
- .25 oz demerara simple syrup (could sub honey simple syrup)
- Dash ground cinnamon
- Apple slice
- Cinnamon stick
- 40 oz bourbon (5 cups)
- 40 oz fresh spiced cider (5 cups)
- 14 oz fresh lemon juice (1.75 cups)
- 5 oz demerara simple syrup (could sub honey simple syrup)
- ground cinnamon
- Apple slices
- Cinnamon sticks
- 1 cup demerara sugar
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Bring water to a boil, add sugar or honey, stir consistently until dissolved. Store in the refrigerator for up to 14 days.
- If you are making a single cocktail, throw all your ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice, shake for 20 seconds, and pour over a large ice cube. Garnish with apple slice, a dash of ground cinnamon, and a cinnamon stick.
- If you are making a pitcher for all, throw it all in a pitcher, stir, and chill for about an hour in the fridge. Set out with garnishes alongside it for folks to serve themselves. Enjoy!