10 Cider Cocktails to Make You Love Apples
Cider is one of those drinks that seems to have evolved a lot in recent years. When I was younger, it was a bit of a poor relation to beer and lager. I worked for a while in a village pub after leaving college and cider was more often just part of mixed drinks – what we would now class as cider cocktails.
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Nowadays, walk down the cider aisle at the supermarket and it is astounding the many varieties. Every fruit you can image, blends of different flavours and even cider mixed with other alcohol to make different drinks. Cider has become a popular drink – but it still isn’t everyone’s taste!
If you are a cider fan or want to give it another chance, understanding it might help you love those apples. Or at least find a new cocktail recipe to enjoy with them!
Types of cider
The first thing to understand is that there are hundreds, possibly thousands of types of cider. If there’s a type of apple, there can be cider made from it not to mention all those other fruit flavours. That said there are a few basic categories of cider that you can run into:
- ‘White’ cider – these are the almost colourless ciders that have a fresher and sweeter taste. If you want to make cider cocktails, these aren’t usually the best option and if you talk to cider experts, they aren’t really an option for anything! But if you find the stronger, drier ciders not to your taste, these are worth trying.
- Mass-market ciders – thee are the ones that you will find in the supermarket with a medium colour, ABV around 4-5% and a variety of tastes. They are often the ones made into other fruit flavours too.
- Vintage cider – this loosely refers to cider that has been aged in oak barrels most commonly to have a stronger taste and deeper colour, usually around 7-8% ABV.
- Farmhouse or scrumpy – often associated with the south-east of England, these are now available around the world and have a cloudy appearance due to being unfiltered. There is often a bit of sediment at the bottom and plenty of taste with an ABV of 6-8%.
- ‘Real’ cider – these are the higher quality ciders that have no artificial ingredients, 100% pure juice and natural fermenting processes. Usually, they are still rather than sparkling but not always and ABV can be 3-8%.
Specific cider types
There are also a few specific cider types that can help you get the hang of what type of cider you want to try or to mix.
| Specific Cider Style | Clarity | Colour | Apple Type | Additions |
| New World | Clear to brilliant | Pale to medium gold | Culinary, wild, crab apples | None |
| English | Slightly cloudy to brilliant | Medium yellow to amber | Bittersweet, bittersharp | None |
| French | Clear to brilliant | Medium yellow to amber | Bittersweet, bittersharp | None |
| New England | Clear to brilliant | Pale to medium yellow | New England | None |
| Applewine | Clear to brilliant | Pale to medium gold | Unspecified | Sugar |
| Ice cider | Brilliant | Gold to amber | Unspecified (apples are frozen before making) | None |
| Cider with herbs/spices | Clear to brilliant | Varies on additives | Unspecified | Herbs and spices |
| White | Clear to brilliant | Very pale, nearly clear | Apples with pale juice | None |
| Black | Unspecified | Amber shades | Unspecified | Hops, malted barley |
Variations of cider
Because cider has been around for a long time, there are also a number of drinks based on it or similar to it from around the world.
Calvados
Calvados and Applejack are made from cider and are often seen in cocktail recipes. Calvados comes from Normandy, France and is made with a double distillation process for an ABV around 40%. Applejack is a North American drink made by concentrating cider to create a drink with an ABV of 20-30%.
Pommeau
This is an aperitif made om Normandy that uses unfermented apple juice and apple brandy in a barrel to produce a stronger drink with a fuller flavour.
Poire
This is a drink similar to cider that is made from pear juice and is sometimes known as perry. A sweetened version is called Babycham and is served in cute, mini champagne style bottles that were very popular at one time.
There are also lots of regional ciders that take the basics of the drink and use their own processes or fruits to create something that is a little different.
10 Cider cocktails and drinks to try
Okay so now we have a bit better understanding of the types of cider we can add to cider cocktails, time to move on to the drinks recipes themselves!
Spicy Mulled Apple Cider
This is a great autumn cocktail that is a little warming due to the presence of the spices. It is also easy to make in a slow cooker and ideal for parties.
Ingredients
- 1 gallon apple cider
- 1 orange, washed thoroughly and sliced
- 1 small handful whole cloves
- 3-4 cinnamon sticks
- 1 t. ground allspice
- 3 T. maple syrup
Combine all the ingredients in a slow cooker, stirring. Cook on the lowest setting for 3-4 hours then strain and serve.
Mulled Apple Cider with a twist
This is another variation on the above recipe that uses a little more flavouring and a bit more garnish so again is a brilliant party drink. This will serve 4-6 people comfortably so simply multiply by your number of guests.
Ingredients
- ½ gallon fresh apple cider
- 1 medium organic orange, sliced
- ½ c. fresh orange juice
- 3 whole cinnamon sticks
- 10-15 whole cloves
- 2 t. ground cinnamon
- 2 t. five-spice powder
Garnish – whole orange slices and cinnamon sticks
Add all ingredients to the slow cooker and stir. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 6-7 hours then strain. Best served in large mugs with the garnish.
Caramel Spiced Apple Cider
Last one of the simple cider cocktails, this one adds the caramel flavour to the drink. You can make your own or cheat a little with some pre-made caramel sauce from the shop and a little whipped cream.
Ingredients
- ½ gallon apple cider
- 1/3 c. brown sugar, packed
- 2 T. pumpkin pie spice
- 2 t. real vanilla extract
- 3 cinnamon sticks
Caramel sauce
- ½ c. heavy cream
- 1 c. white sugar
- 2 T. water
- 4 T. unsalted butter
Maple whipped cream
- 1 pint heavy whipped cream
- 1-2 T. real maple syrup
Directions
For the Caramel Sauce:
Pre-heat oven to lowest setting.
Warm the heavy cream in a small saucepan over low heat. (You’ll want to slightly warm the cream to prevent curdling when it is added to the hot liquid).
Add the sugar and water to a heavy-bottomed oven-safe saucepan and stir to combine. Set spoon aside and do not stir the sugar mixture again. Bring mixture to a boil over medium-high heat. If sugar crystals remain on the sides of the pan, gently brush them back down with a moistened silicon baking brush.
Continue boiling until the mixture turns a nice amber colour. Do not overcook. If the mixture gets too dark at this stage, you will need to start over. If a dark spot forms on one side due to uneven heating, lift the pan and gently swirl until the colour is even again. Return pan to the burner and reduce heat when the desired colour is achieved.
Slowly whisk in the warmed cream until thoroughly incorporated. Be very careful while doing so because the sugar mixture will be extremely hot and will bubble up when the cooler cream is added.
Remove from heat and add butter. Stir with a clean spoon until butter is totally incorporated into the mixture. Cool and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
For the Maple Whipped Cream:
In a large glass bowl, blend 1 pint of heavy whipping cream with a hand or immersion blender until it doubles in size and changes the texture. Then, drizzle maple syrup into the bowl and continue blending until the mixture is light and fluffy.
For the Apple Cider:
Add the apple cider, brown sugar, pumpkin pie spice, vanilla, and cinnamon sticks to your slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours.
After 2.5 hours, stir in ½ cup caramel sauce. Cover and allow the flavours to mingle for the remaining 30 minutes.
Remove and discard cinnamon sticks. To serve, ladle the hot cider into mugs and top with maple whipped cream and drizzle with additional caramel sauce.
The Flannel
The Flannel is a classic cider cocktail. To make it, you need 1 ounce cognac, ½ ounce cider syrup, ¼ ounce allspice dram and ¼ ounce orange juice.
To make apple cider syrup, take four cups of cider and add to a pan. Bring to the boil and reduce the heat then simmer, stirring occasionally, for about an hour until reduced to around one cup. Remove from the heat and leave to cool – will make around 8 of these cocktails and should keep for a fortnight in the fridge.
Wassail
Wassail is a very old English word that was a type of greeting then became known as a bowl of ale which people dipped bread and cakes in – this led to the modern idea of a ‘toast’. It also led to a mulled cider cocktail.
Ingredients:
- 10 cloves
- 10 white peppercorns
- ½ inch fresh ginger
- 3 cinnamon sticks
- 1 tsp ground nutmeg
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 10 cups cider
- 1 375ml bottle sherry (Oloroso is recommended)
- 10 ounces bourbon
- 4 ounces spiced pear liqueur
- ½ ounce allspice dram
Bundle the cloves, peppercorns, ginger and cinnamon into cheesecloth and tie up with kitchen twine. Take a large pan and add the packet with nutmeg, sugar and cider. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat and simmer for half an hour.
Turn the heat down low and add the alcohol and allspice dram. Heat slowly so the alcohol doesn’t burn off. Remove the spice bag and serve, garnished with a cinnamon stick.
Spiced Apple Fizz
I must admit I hadn’t heard of Bison Grass Vodka until recently but was surprised to see it is even in my local supermarket. I’m tempted to try it and this cocktail might be one to have a go with.
You need 1.5 ounces Bison Grass vodka, ½ ounce Poire Williams Pear Brandy, ½ ounce lemon juice, 1.2 ounce honey syrup and some apple cider. Add everything to a mixing glass apart from the cider, shake and strain into a highball. Add the cider and garnish with an apple fan and a little grated cinnamon.
Apple Cider Mojitos
Nothing better than a good twist on a classic and this apple cider version of the Mojito still has some of the familiar ingredients.
You need the juice of 1 lemon, ½ cup golden rum, apple cider and mint, apple slices and cinnamon sticks for garnish. Add the lemon juice between two glasses then split the rum. Fill ¾ full with the cider and add the garnish.
Northern Spy
This cocktail uses both apple cider and Calvados, the stronger spirit made from cider. You need ¾ ounce Calvados and the same of lemon juice, ½ ounce maple syrup and a dash of Peychaud’s Bitters. Add all the ingredients to a shaker with ice then strain to a champagne flute. Top with apple cider and garnish with a lemon spiral.
Apple Cider Old Fashioned
Another twist on the classic, this cocktail calls for 2/3 cup apple cider, 2 ounces whiskey, 2 dashes of Angostura Bitters and apple slices for garnish as well as a cinnamon stick. Simple to make, just add everything to the glass, stir and garnish!
Apple Cider Sangria
No party is complete without a bowl of sangria or punch so here’s one to finish the cider cocktails collection from How Sweet Eats. You need a bottle of pinot grigot, 2.5 cups of cider, 1 cup of club soda, ½ cup ginger brandy, 3 apples and 3 pears. Add everything in the bowl, stir then refrigerate for an hour or more before serving.
Tasty cider cocktails
There’s no doubt that there’s something about tasty cider cocktails that says autumn but there’s really no reason you can’t enjoy them at any time of the year. And if you have a favourite type of cider, you can always try it in some of the drinks to see how it works – I’d love to hear how you get on!
