Autumn is the season to find an excuse to throw a party given the obvious contenders of Halloween and Thanksgiving. But then there is National Pickle Day November 14th or Howl at the Moon Day and Night Day October 26th. Of course you would not want to miss Day of the Ninja December 5th.

For any occasion, fall beckons us to gather around the fire with friends and family and warming beverages in hand. We have curated a delicious list of cider-inspired cocktails for you to try as you toast in this season’s harvest. Hard cider is less sweet than its non-alcoholic counterpart. With an effervescent crispness and an array of interesting and subtle flavors, many of St. Vrain ciders make the perfect blending base for your next cocktail concoction. Need more ideas? Head over to our Mixology page for more delicious ways to use cider to brighten your life.

Dry Cider Moscow Mule

This is the apple-inspired version of a beloved classic cocktail, the Moscow Mule. The hard apple cider gives the traditional mule a zesty boost with sweet, crisp aromas; a nice complement to the ginger beer.  St. Vrain’s Dry Apple is a refreshing cider that starts with baked apple and tea on the nose. Fresh, dry apple flavors combine with the white wine-like minerality from the Winesap apples in the blend. The cinnamon adds warmth to the cocktail and the lime juice brings it home for a nice, fresh finish.

Serving 1
Ingredients
1 oz vodka of your choice
2 oz St Vrain Dry Apple Cider
Juice of one small lime wedge
½ cup good quality ginger beer
Cinnamon to sprinkle

Instructions
Grab a copper mug, mix in the vodka, St. Vrain Dry Apple and lime juice.
Put ice in the glass, add some cinnamon over the ice, then fill with ginger beer of choice.
Stir well. Garnish with a cinnamon stick and apple slice.

Guava in the Fall Cider Cocktail

As the temperatures continue to drop, let yourself slip into the warmth of sunnier lands where rum is cheaper than water. Grab a growler of St. Vrain’s Pink Guava cider on your next visit to St. Vrain to get this doozy started. We ferment pink Guava in our Dry Apple cider to create this tart, tropical refresher.

Serving 1
Ingredients
Half of lime, sliced
1 tbsp (heaping if you’d like) Granulated sugar
1 oz Light or dark rum from tropical island of choice

Instructions
Have a cocktail shaker? Take it and add 3 lime slices. Pour the sugar on top and muddle until the sugar is saturated by the lime juice. No muddler? Try using the handle of a wooden spoon to mash the sugar and lime together. No cocktail shaker? You can use a glass and a stirrer.
Pour in rum, Pink Guava cider and several ice cubes.
Shake the mixture with some umph for at least 15 seconds.
Pour into your cocktail glass filled with ice and garnish with a slice of lime and a smile.

Cranberry Ginger Cider Cocktail

A simple but tasty cocktail bursting with flavors of cranberry, orange, ginger and crisp apple. The autumn fruit flavors complement St. Vrain’s Dry Ginger cider, a dry cider infused with Fuji ginger, to add refreshing citrus notes and a hint of ginger heat, to a tart apple base.

Serving 1
Ingredients
1 Can of St. Vrain’s Dry Ginger, chilled
1 oz vodka
2 oz cranberry juice
1 oz fresh squeezed orange juice, strained

Instructions
Grab the cocktail shaker and fill it and the glass with ice. Add the cranberry juice, orange juice, and vodka to shaker. Shake it until the whole container is chilled.
Strain concoction into glass and top off with Dry Ginger hard cider.
Garnish with an apple slice and a handful of fresh or frozen cranberries.

Bourbon Dry Apple Cider

Nothing hits the spot on a fall day like this American legend. The crispness of the cider keeps your spirits up as the bourbon melts away your chills. The cinnamon and sugar mixture on the rim invites you to keep sipping and enjoying until the sun comes out again.

Serving 1
Ingredients
4oz St. Vrain’s Dry Apple cider
2 oz Bourbon
1 tbsp Sugar
2 tbsp cinnamon
1 Orange wedge
1 Rosemary sprig

Instructions
Combine sugar and cinnamon together on a small plate.
Rub the orange wedge around the edge of the glass. Flip the glass over and rub over the cinnamon/sugar mixture, evenly distributing it across the rim. Fill the glass with ice.
Take the shaker, fill it with ice, then combine the cider and bourbon. Shake or stir according to your preference. Strain into the sugar coated glass ice filled glass.
Garnish with an orange slice and rosemary sprig.